My Peace I Give Unto You
by Pookie2
Summary: While journeying to Utah, the Courier comes face-to-face with the Burned Man. Part 7 of the "All the Things You Are" storyline. Rated for language, violence, sexual content.
1. The Flesh is Weak

"The Boomers are ready to back us. They just need details when they're available," Layla said, hoping she wouldn't have to elaborate further on the agreement. The Boomers had actually promised to support her, whichever side she took, and she'd hadn't quite made a decision on that yet.

"With the Boomers on our side, we'll be able to move on soon." House said. The motionless image of his face on the huge screen in the penthouse flickered as he spoke.

Layla knew there were good reasons to support House. She was an NCR citizen and supported her government… but that didn't make them infallible in her eyes. Every point House had made that the NCR was just waiting for the right moment to take New Vegas from him was true. The government could be plenty greedy when it wanted to be, despite the greater good it did tend to spread. If New Vegas, Freeside, and Westside wanted independence, Layla wasn't going to be the one to deny them.

The Courier agreed with House's goals for the most part, but she still didn't trust him. Layla had a bad feeling something was going to sour the deal, but so far there hadn't been any indication of it. So for now, she would work with him until something changed.

"How soon?" she asked.

"Soon," House repeated. "There are some… issue that are going to need some time before we can move on. Incidentally, I was recently made aware of the bounty you and your associate have managed to have put on your heads."

"Oh." Layla wondered how he'd heard about that. "Well… it hasn't been that much of a problem." Layla bit her lip, slightly embarrassed. "I can still do my job."

"You are my liaison with the Boomers and will be so to others as well. It wouldn't do for you to end up publicly executed by the Legion for the NCR's sake."

"I'm trying to avoid that."

"Good. I will let you know when the next phase can start. There are some… delicate preparations that need to be completed. I suggest you lay low until then."

*.*.*

Raul looked at the cards in his hand for a few moments, then raised the bet. Boone's face didn't change as he called him, then showed his cards.

"So, any two deuces but one has to be a spade, and it's a 'hand grenade,' right?" Raul asked, glancing back at his cards.

"Yeah," Boone said from across the kitchen table, sounding cautious.

"And a 'hand grenade' beats anything with a face card, right?" the ghoul continued.

"…Yeah."

"Then I guess I beat your three-of-a-kind," Raul said, laying the cards on the table.

"Yeah, you win… again," the sniper sighed.

"I told you not to teach Kaboom to Raul," Veronica said from further down the table, going over the holo-vid player Victor had dug up at Layla's request. Arcade sat next to her with a yellowed and tattered manual in hand as they tried to get the thing to work. "He's a card shark."

"It just seems that way to the people who lose to me," said the mechanic.

"Har har." The girl turned back to Arcade. "All right, are we ready?"

"Try the power," the doctor said, giving the machine a dubious look.

Squinting one eye closed, Veronica flicked the 'on' switch, and the TV screen flashed once, then went dark again.

"Well I give up," the scribe said moodily. Usually she had no problem getting mechanical equipment to work, but the meaning behind the vid-player's many cords had been eluding her. Arcade sighed.

"Don't they have these things at Hidden Valley?" said the doctor.

"Yeah… but I've never got a chance to look at one." The scribe chewed her lip. She didn't really want to go back right away, not after the blow up from bringing them the Pulse Gun. But she really wanted to see the horde of movies Layla had found.

"Yeah, maybe I'll head out tomorrow and see what Lorenzo can tell me."

Layla came walking in shortly after. She waved halfheartedly to the group and went to the fridge.

"Well?" Veronica asked.

"Huh?" Layla's head popped above the door. "Oh, I'm thinking gecko kebabs for dinner… Sound good?" She glanced around for objections.

"Not that, but yes kebabs are good. What did House say?"

"Oh, I guess the Legion's been quiet lately. Everyone figures they're starting to rework their plans for the Dam." She started gathering items from the fridge and setting them on the counter. "My money's on Caesar didn't let anyone in on the whole plan, so now no one knows the plan. Which means they need a new plan."

"Probably not a bad thing," Arcade said thoughtfully. "I get the feeling Lanius isn't as crafty as Caesar…"

"Don't be so sure," Layla said as she started cutting up the banana yuccas she'd pulled from the fridge, "Lucius, the one in charge of the Praetorians, told me he was pretty clever. Even Inculta sounded like he was afraid of him." She started skewering the fruit. "Said he could sense weakness in his enemies."

"When exactly did you have a meet and greet with Legion hotshots?" Arcade asked, shaking his head incredulously.

"When I got done not blowing up the securitron vault I had a couple minutes to shoot the breeze before Caesar was ready for me at his tent." She gave the doctor a wry grin. "It was funny, right up until they started trying to kill me, they were very hospitable. Didn't even try to rape me once."

"How sweet of them," the doctor said sarcastically.

"I have that effect on people," Layla mused. "Speaking of the Legion, House knows about the bounties."

"I bet he wasn't happy with that…" Raul said from behind his cards.

"He just doesn't want me to get murdered before I'm done helping him." She'd moved on to cutting the gecko meat. "He was very concerned about Boone though, asked that I made sure he was safe and went on and on about how he couldn't bear the idea of him getting hurt while in Legion hands. It was very unprofessional."

"I have that effect on people," Boone said, eyes still on his hand. He grinned, then laid his cards on the table. "Full house." Raul smirked at that. He showed his cards, and the grin left the sniper's face.

"Tactical Nuke."

"Toooold you," Veronica teased as she finished winding the cables from the vid-player into neat loops.

"So now what are we doing?" Arcade asked.

"Laying low. House has something cooking. He'll let us know when its ready."

Cass walked into the room, grinning. "Nothing to do then? Good, you can go out with me tonight."

"Go out where?" The Courier gave her a mildly suspicious look.

"Drinking, gambling, get in a fight, maybe get our dicks wet."

"I'll keep my dick quite dry, thank you… but I'm always in the mood for a fight," the girl said, then looked at Veronica. "You in?"

"Nah, the night scene's starting to lose it's charm…" the scribe answered.

Layla frowned for a moment, then looked at Arcade. "Do I have a clean bill of health, doc?"

The doctor gave her a exasperated look. "You've recovered enough to go out, but I don't advise overdoing it."

"Wouldn't think of it," Cass said, grinning. Then she noticed the wary looks she was getting from the other side of the table. Boone and Raul probably weren't happy with the idea of the Courier getting plastered so soon after her near-fatal radiation poisoning. "Oh don't give me that look. Go back to your card game."

Both men were still frowning in their direction, and Layla laughed. "We'll be fine. Why don't you show Arcade and Veronica how to play Kaboom while we're gone?"

Between the game and dinner, the others gave no further arguments, and the girls left for the Strip soon after.

*.*.*

"You ever hear of the Happy Trails Trading Company?" Layla asked Cass as they sat in Brimstone. The Courier had protested; even under new management, she wasn't a big fan of the Gomorrah. Cass had talked her into it eventually, complaining that the Tops had been getting old.

"Sure. Small outfit, decent bunch… Why?"

"Got a message on my Pip-Boy from them. They're looking for people for a caravan to Utah." The girl grinned. "Do you know Jed?"

"Jed Masterson? That old bastard is still running around?" Cass grinned into her whiskey. "Good man. Got a voice that could talk the skirt off a nun."

Layla smiled, "I'd noticed that."

"You're not planning on going to Mormon country, are you?'

"No, I don't think I've worn out my welcome in Vegas yet." The girl noticed her friend had been glancing behind her a few times. "What?"

"That one keeps looking our way," Cass answered, "which would be good, except he's looking at you."

Layla glanced casually and saw a man with dark, messy hair looking her way from the other side of the bar. He winked at her, and she nearly blushed, turning back to Cass.

"Oh he saw me," The Courier said quickly, causing the other woman to laugh.

"Well, you looked right at him. Think you can deflect him my way?"

"What makes you think I don't want a shot at him?" Layla said mildly. Cass laughed again.

"You can't call dibs on every man in the Mojave."

"What? I don't do that."

"Fine," Cass said. "I'll trade you him for Boone."

"What? No!" Layla squealed, then started blushing furiously. "I uh, you know… It's not like that."

"Uh huh." Cass grinned. "So are you gonna set me up or what?"

"With Boone?" The younger woman sounded worried for a moment. "Oh, right. Him. I'll try."

Having managed to get her blushing under control, she looked back to the man and found him coming their way. "Uh oh, here he comes."

"Gonna go with the usual?" Cass asked.

"Yeah," Layla answered. That meant indicating she was off the market by informing him that she was happily married to her beloved Arcade Gannon. She, Cass, and Veronica had all used that excuse during their time on the Strip to ward off unwanted advances. The doctor had not yet been informed of his many wives.

"Can I buy you a drink, angel?" the man asked as he ambled up to Layla. She smiled sweetly at him.

"Flattered, but spoken for," she said, and the man continued before she could speak further.

"Ah, so you _are_ taken."

Layla glance Cass' way. If people recognized them by their fake marriages to Arcade, the doctor was going to be _pissed_.

"Can't blame you," the man continued. "Most girls go nuts for those red berets."

"Wha-?" Layla sputtered.

"They sure do," Cass said, slapping the rapidly blushing Courier on the back. "Layla's got a thing for snipers, don't you?"

"I uh…"

"Let me buy both of you a drink," their new friend said as he sat next to Cass at the bar. "Name's Dick."

"Dick, huh?" Cass said, giving the man a lewd look. "That a nickname?"

Dick laughed. "Sometimes," he said as he flagged the bartender over. "Drinks are on me tonight, ladies."

"Now you're talking," Cass said, grinning.

*.*.*

_Oh Dick, you dick. _The man thought to himself as he escorted the two girls through the courtyard of the Gomorrah. _What are you going to do with all that money? _

Both women were stumbling drunk. Just a little further into a more deserted area, and part two of the plan could begin. It would be just as tricky as this part, maybe worse, but he was pretty confident now.

"Hee hee! Oh Cass… I think I'm drunk…" The Courier said, dissolving into giggles. Dick might have felt bad about this; the girl was actually pretty sweet, but he'd be on easy street once he turned her in. This was probably his best chance to get her. Sure, he'd miss the other half of the bounty without the First Recon sniper, but word was that guy was the reason everyone else failed to get both of them anyway. So Dick did the sensible thing and seized the opportunity to grab the girl while she was unguarded.

"Yer a lightweight," the other woman slurred, taking an unsteady step.

_Well, now or never. _Dick moved up to Layla and grabbed her by the waist.

"Hey, no. Gotta buy me dinner first… and turn into a sniper. My sniper."

Ignoring her, Dick tossed her over his shoulder and started for the back gate. All he had to do was hand her off to his partner, Winthrop, who would be waiting for him. Then they'd meet up in Freeside and head down to the river. Easy as pie. The girl on his shoulder laughed.

"Wha- Hey, what?"

"Hey! No man-handling!" Cass said with a giggle. "Only Boone gets to do that!" Dick grimaced. He'd hoped he wouldn't have to kill either of them, but if she was going to make a fuss…

He turned, drawing his silenced .22, and found, to his surprise, the woman had a revolver trained on him. Cass was leaning against the wall, nearly falling over, but the gun in her hand was steady and unwaveringly pointed at his crotch.

"I said put her down, or Imma shoot you in the dick, Dick." She started laughing.

Dick moved to shoot the woman as she spoke, but Cass fired first. The first shot sent him doubling over in pain. The second caught him in the chest, sending him and the girl tumbling to the ground.

"Whoop! Cass, I fell down."

"No you didn't…. Dick dropped you. What a dick… HAW!"

As the life drained from him, Dick saw Cass stumble over to them and drag Layla to her feet. Both women were still laughing over what the older woman had said.

"You bitch, I was gonna fuck him…" Cass hiccuped. "Now he's all dead. Too dead to fuck."

"I'm sorry," Layla said. "Wanna go home and make out?"

"Yeah, sure," Cass answered as Dick's world went black.

*.*.*

Arcade yawned, stepping out of the bedroom and heading toward the kitchen. He'd been up way too late playing Kaboom with Raul, Boone and Veronica, but he woke up early as usual. Coffee, sweet lady coffee was what he needed. Chicory actually, the scientist in him mused. It was chicory; real coffee only grew around the equator , and no one was lining up to bring sacks of coffee beans up to the Mojave. He'd heard there were coffee farms in Mexico, but if that was the case, they never made it this far north. Everyone called it coffee though. Sweet lady coffee, the only woman he'd ever love.

As he passed Layla's room, he heard noises coming from the open door. Looking in, his eyebrows raised at the sight before him. Layla sat on Cass' lap on the bed. Both women were naked from the waist up and kissing passionately. The doctor blinked at the mildly erotic sight.

"Huh. And I'm the only one who wouldn't care…" He shrugged and went back to his mission for his dark, liquid mistress.

*.*.*

Layla's eyes opened to the sight of the chandelier on her bedroom ceiling and a pounding headache.

"Oohh God, why?" She rolled over and fell out of bed with a thud. Sitting up, she noticed she was only wearing pants.

"What the hell?" came a voice from above her on the bed. Looking over the mattress with a certain level of horror, Layla confirmed it was indeed Cass in her bed, just as topless as she was.

"AHHHH! What did you do to me?"

"What did _I_ do? You're the one who wanted to tongue wrestle!" the caravaneer said testily, pulling the sheet over herself.

Layla buried her face in her mattress with a groan, trying to remember the night before. One portion of the night came back quickly.

"Did you shoot someone at the Gomorrah last night?" she cried, looking back up.

"Yeah, he was trying to kidnap you."

"What?"

"He got us drunk and planned on carrying you off."

"How is it you remember this?" Layla said as she peered at the other woman.

"Fuck, if I didn't remember what I did when I was drunk I wouldn't remember half my life."

The Courier groaned again as her head continued to throb. She rubbed her eyes.

"He must have put something in my drink… I can barely remember a thing."

"No, you're just a puss."

Layla gave her a glare, which then melted to a frown. "This… didn't mean anything, right? We were drunk and apparently in the mood the make sober life as awkward as possible. Nothing else… right?"

"Right. Oh fuck, did anyone see us?" The caravaneer noticed the door was open. Layla paled, then quickly groped around for her shirt, pulling it on. She gave the older woman a confused look when she found her grinning.

"I didn't realize you were so hard up you'd take advantage of me while I was drunk."

"Ugh, get out of my room, and this _never_ happened."

"Agreed."

*.*.*

Arcade had just finished reading an interesting article on spleens when Layla finally surfaced. Judging by her stiff walk and the way she was squinting at the dim light, she was more than likely hungover.

"Good night?" the doctor asked, grinning, while deciding at the same time to be mercifully discreet about the girls' drunken dabblings. Layla grumbled as she sat down.

"Just wonderful. I got swept off my feet," she said moodily.

He gave her a questioning look, and the girl shrugged.

"Not a good night."

"Ah." Looking her over, he noted the frown on her face seemed a little much even for a hangover.

"What's wrong?" he asked. The Courier let out a deep sigh, and Arcade recognized her 'I'm about to admit something' face.

"When Cass and I went out the other night there was this guy. He kept buying us drinks, seemed real nice..."

"Did he try to pull something funny?" Arcade asked, starting to worry.

"Yeah," The Courier replied.

"_What?_" Arcade and Layla looked up to find Boone in the doorway. The doctor marveled at the man's timing.

"No, not like that," Layla said quickly. "He was just getting us drunk so he could kidnap me."

That didn't seem to calm him any. Now a different kind of anger radiated off of the sniper.

"What? What happened?" Arcade cried.

"We were at the Gomorrah. Cass popped him before he could carry me off. I barely remember any of it, to be honest. But I definitely remember her shooting the guy."

"Well, that's… good?" the doctor said, then noticed the Courier sigh deeply again, a depressed look coming over her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She looked glum. "This bounty thing sucks. Stupid skirt-wearing, town-burning, slaving jerks. They ruin everything…"

"I know, what's the state of the world if you can't accept drinks from a random stranger at the Gomorrah?" Arcade said sarcastically. "Have you ever thought about leaving the Mojave for a while? Just until things dies down?"

"Nah, that'd just…" She trailed off, thinking.

"'That'd just'?" Arcade prompted.

"I'm going to Utah."

There was a confused silence at the table.

"Just for a couple weeks. Some little caravan company's looking for Couriers and people with Pip-Boys. I've got both." She sat up, depressed look evaporating. She looked up to find two concerned faces looking in her direction.

"What?"

"It's probably a trap," Arcade said. "They asked for Couriers with Pip-Boys? How many of those are there around?"

"They were asking for guards too, and they didn't specifically say 'Couriers with Pip-Boys.' They said 'Couriers' and 'people with Pip-Boys.'"

Arcade's frown hadn't left him, and he noted Boone's hadn't either. The girl continued. "I'm gonna at least go and see what they have to say. Besides, Cass said she's heard of them, pretty legit."

"Where's the goddamned coffee?" Cass grumbled, meandering in. "I… Uh oh," she said as she noticed the faces Boone and Arcade were making. "Layla… what did you tell them?"

"About Dick at the Gomorrah," the Courier said quickly.

"Ah, that… dick." The caravaneer smiled slightly. "We should just put up a bulletin board for when someone tries to kidnap you. We keep calling meetings about it, we'll never get anything done."

Layla frowned. "I've decided to go to Utah."

"What?" Cass looked surprised. "With Jed?"

"Yeah. Maybe some time out of the Mojave wouldn't be the worst idea."

"Well shit, I'll go too," the other woman said. "The walls have been closing in on me around here anyway."

Layla smiled. "Okay, how about you two?" She turned her 'pretty please' smile at them. Unfortunately for the Courier, Arcade was well protected against such tactics.

"No thanks. I'm enjoying the pseudo-civilization around here too much to go trotting all over creation." He nearly cracked under the pouty face she made, but stood firm. "Besides, the Followers might need me around here."

She relented at that, and looked at Boone.

"I'll go," he said. Arcade thought for a moment that the poor schlub had no defenses against Layla's batting eyelashes. But going by his rigid posture, 'mother bear mode,' as Veronica called it, had kicked in. Undoubtedly caused by the kidnapping attempt.

Layla smiled at him. "Great. We'll head to the meeting spot tomorrow morning."

*.*.*

Very early the next morning, Layla closed her pack. She was only taking what Cass had suggested, her medical equipment, ammo, only a few of her weapons, a simple repair kit, and food. She was going to have to leave all her extra outfits, Brutus, and all the books she usually kept on her. Cass had mentioned they'd be going through rocky, tightly packed areas, so they had to travel light. Layla wasn't looking forward to a couple weeks in only her sneaking armor, but she'd complied. Well, for the most part. Arcade had snuck her a few smaller books after Cass' inspection.

Facing the group, who'd assembled to see them off, she smiled. Even Veronica had gotten up, and she looked like she was going to fall asleep on her feet.

"All right, Raul, you're in charge while I'm gone. The emergency caps are in a chest next to my desk, don't spend my gold bar, and no parties. I just filled the fridge, so that should last you for a while. Don't forget to feed ED-E and change his litter box, and don't mess up the suite while we're gone."

"Are you going to tell House you're leaving?" Arcade asked, ignoring most of what she'd just said.

"I went up earlier, but he wasn't online… so I taped a note to his screen. That reminds me, we should probably get going."

"All right, let's get a move on," said Cass. She glanced Boone's way. "You all set?" He merely nodded.

After Layla hugged everyone goodbye, including ED-E, they left for the meeting spot.

* * *

><p>I heard the PSN store is up, so enjoy Honest Hearts, folks!<p>

I'd like to take a moment to thank my editor. Fellow writers, if you find a person who can look at the blob of letters you hand them and they somehow manage to figure out what you going for, marry them. I know I did :3

See you on Wednesday!


	2. And All Her Paths Are Peace

Welcome to the longest chapter ever!

* * *

><p><strong>Day 1<strong>

"You sure about this guy?" Boone murmured on the way into the cave.

"Yeah, Jed's good people," Cass answered. "I haven't seen him in a few years, and for all I know he got mean, but last time I saw him he was an honest man." That didn't seem to allay the sniper's worries.

Layla led the way further in and found a section of the rock cavern lit by lanterns where a group of people were gathered. A dark-skinned man with an easy smile waved as they approached.

"Rose of Sharon Cassidy! Still lighting up the Mojave with that smile?" Layla immediately recognized Jed Masterson by his voice as he smiled broadly at Cass.

"Aw stuff it you old flatterer," Cass said, smiling back. "I hear tell you're hard up for hired help."

"And I hear Cassidy Caravans has been sold…" He said the last part carefully, and Layla saw Cass' face fall.

"I'm not the first one the Mojave's chewed up and spit out…"

"No, but you're one of the only ones who didn't deserve it."

"I don't know about that…" she trailed off for a moment. "So you need help or not?" She nodded to the others. "This is Layla and Boone. She's a courier, and he's ex-military." Layla waved to the group assembled.

"Well, I'd be a fool not to take an experienced Caravaneer." He frowned in Boone's direction. "We are full up on guards though… Jimmy here was our last hire." He indicated a man behind him who stood next to two other guards in leather armor. The caravan master took a second look at Boone, eyes landing on his beret.

"Were you at Hoover Dam, son?"

The sniper merely nodded, and Jed looked thoughtful. "You vouch for him, Cass?"

"You're not gonna find a better sniper in or out of the Mojave."

"Jimmy?" Jed turned to the guard, who looked up. "You're fired." The man looked shocked for a moment, then stalked out of the cave with a scowl.

"That's settled," Jed said jovially, then looked at Layla. "Except for you. Sorry, little lady, we're fresh out of open spots."

Layla frowned. "I have medical training, I'm a courier for the Mojave Express and the NCR and I have a Pip-Boy…"

"We've already got a Pip-Boy, and we're not completely without medical experience with Stella…" Jed replied, sounding like he was trying to let her down easy.

"I can cook…" she tried, and he looked like he was on the edge of caving in.

"We're not going without her," Cass added firmly.

"All right then, you're in." Jed said, then looked back to Cass. "25 a day, half up front, half when we get there, bonus for Zion, bonus for New Canaan."

Cass laughed. "25 each, right?"

"…40 for the lot of you."

"60."

"50. We weren't going bring the courier, you know."

"55. Not my fault you let her talk you into it."

"…Deal."

"Good." Cass grinned. "Pay the lady."

Once Jed had handed Layla a sack of caps, he introduced the group.

"This is Stella." A woman with laser rifle on her back waved. "Jenny and Chris." The two remaining guards nodded.

"Good job getting rid of Jimmy. Total dick bag," Jenny said. "Now see if you can get rid of Ricky." She indicated the final member of their group, a man wearing a Vault suit and a Pip-Boy.

"You know you want all over this," he said to the guard, then turned to the others. "Don't worry ladies. I'll keep a real close eye on you while we travel." Layla was curious about his Vault attire, but the leer he pointed at her and Cass kept her from asking about it. Instead she moved toward the guards, shaking hands as she went.

With the except of Ricky, who was still leering at her, the group seemed friendly. Boone nodded to the others, but kept a wary eye on them. The Courier looked over and found Cass still speaking with Jed.

"When do we leave?" Cass asked.

"If you're ready, we can start now," Jed answered.

"Sure. What's the plan?"

"Well…" Jed sounded a little uncomfortable. "The thing is, we've lost contact with New Canaan. This trip is to find out what happened, try to reestablish trade with them." The man frowned. "Hopefully nothing's gone wrong."

"That must be hard on Happy Trails…" Layla commented. The caravan boss smiled humorlessly.

"You're not wrong, but we'll get everything back in line with this trip. Are we ready to get moving?"

"Ready as we'll ever be," Cass answered.

**Day 2**

"…And that's how I ended up switching from whiskey to water trade," Cass said. "I suppose with my bloodline, I should have known better than trusting myself around booze."

"Your dad would have been happier with you behind that old bar," Jed laughed as they continued walking. So far, the trip had been steady and uneventful, and the group had grown talkative.

"Yeah, I don't think the Spitoon would be well-served missing all its whiskey."

"Wait," Layla piped up. "The Spitoon… Cassidy… John Cassidy is your father?"

"Yeah, so what?" Cass said, sounding mildly defensive.

"He was with the Chosen One when she blew up the Enclave oil rig!"

"Oh boy," Cass grumbled. "Let me guess, you're from New Arroyo?"

"Not exactly," Layla said, "Close by though. Why?"

"Because the only people who call her 'The Chosen One' are tribals from Arroyo." Cass looked her way. "I didn't know you were tribal."

"I'm not, but my parents were..." the Courier answered. "My brothers and I were raised all pro-NCR, but some of the tribal stuff stuck, I guess."

"Why'd you leave California?" Jed asked. "The Mojave's a long way from New Arroyo."

Layla shrugged. "Wanted to see the 'frontier,' I guess. It was actually working as a courier that got me this far out. It's kinda boring in the cities."

"What? No one trying to kill you?" Cass asked with a grin.

"Exactly. The worst I had to deal with back there was lookers with low endurance." Boone chuckled, and Cass raised her eyebrow, clearly not in on the joke.

"My mom wasn't so happy with me coming this far out, with the war and all. But by the time I'd left for the Mojave, the Dam battle had already happened. No one wanted me to go, but one of my brothers is a ranger. He set me up with the propaganda job. I guess he thought it'd keep me out of too much trouble."

"Well that backfired," the older woman said. "You've been in more trouble in the last few months than I even knew was possible." She looked over to Jed. "I hope you know you've signed up with a cursed courier."

"I'm not cursed!" Layla said tartly. "I have pretty good luck."

Cass started laughing loudly. "Yeah, between the two bullets to the head and getting kidnapped every other week. You're all kinds of lucky."

"If she survived all that she must have a little luck," Stella said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, see?" the Courier said to Cass. She looked to Stella, hoping to change the subject. "How about you?"

"I grew up in New Reno. Couldn't leave that snake hole quick enough. I ended up sheriff of a place called Caliente. Eventually I got sick of that and started caravan guarding."

"What was Caliente like?" Layla asked.

"Little place, but between the idiots in the town, the raiders, and the marauding tribals, it got old quick. Being a sheriff isn't as glamorous as you'd think when you're half-full of bullets. So I signed on with Jed and we've been stuck together ever since."

"Well, we'd better stop for the night," Jed said, grinning at Stella. Looking around, he pointed out a spot not far off the road. Soon a fire was made, and Layla was starting dinner.

"Your turn, cowboy," Cass said to Boone as she flopped down by the fire. He gave her a mildly confused look.

"Let's hear it," she prompted. "Farm boy or runaway?"

He frowned, but relented after a moment.

"Both, kind of," he started. "There isn't much to tell. Only kid. Parents had a brahmin ranch. Spent most of my time shooting geckos off the herd."

"What are you parents like?" Layla asked, curious.

"They didn't have much time for me," he sighed. "I haven't heard from them since I left to join the military. I wrote when I got married... They never responded."

Cass frowned at that. The poor guy's entire life had been one wreck after another. The caravaneer grinned marginally as Layla dug a Fancy Lad cake out of her bag, offering it to him. Boone's face broke into a slight grin as he accepted the plastic-wrapped snack. At least this part of his life was a mostly positive wreck.

The caravaneer didn't know Boone as well as some of the others Layla'd picked up, but she had a pretty good idea of his background. Everyone at the 38 knew his wife had been killed by the Legion while pregnant with their child. Cass hadn't met too many people with a better reason for a chip on their shoulder.

She also knew a little about the Bitter Spring massacre. One learned a great deal sitting next to soldiers at bars, and the subject came up on occasion. Usually it came down to two pieces of information: First Recon was there and a bunch of people got killed who shouldn't have.

When they'd first met, Boone had been a strange combination of fury and sadness, all kept under a stoic façade. Layla brought her to the Lucky 38 not long after she'd nearly gotten herself killed by Benny the second time. She and the sniper had decided to keep watch over the suite while the rest slept, both suspicious of the set up.

That practice had eventually faded as time had gone by, but Cass had learned from it that the sniper was reliable and protective of his friends. Cass also happened to think the man was smoking hot, but Layla had managed to call dibs on him without ever saying anything.

Dinner was served soon after, and everyone grew quiet as they ate. Eventually, Layla broke the silence.

"Well, how about you, Ricky?" Cass wanted to slap her forehead but stopped herself. Layla and her damn curiosity. She knew that idiot's Vault suit would eventually get to her.

"What do you want to know, Hotness?"

Layla grimaced, apparently choosing to ignore the comment. "What's your story? Were you a Vault dweller?"

"I'm from Vault Two-Two, which is where I learned how to be so fucking awesome!" the man crowed. Cass saw Layla's eyebrows furrow.

"Uh, we've been to Vault Twenty-two. It hasn't had living dwellers for over a hundred years…"

"You've been there?" Ricky clearly hadn't been expecting that. He recovered quickly enough though. "So maybe I stretched the truth. I got this and my Pit-Boy off a dead prospector that'd been to Zion. He was dead when I found him. Anyway, that's how I know the shit's good in Zion."

"I… see." Layla glanced at Cass, and the older woman shrugged.

"Yeah, I'm invaluable to this group. If something needs to be dead, I'll kill the shit out of it!" He got a weird look on his face as he continued. "I've killed all sorts of fuckers all over the place. I'll shoot anything dead. In fact, yeah, they call me Dead-Eye Ricky."

Layla noticed Cass was glowering at him. "How long you been on Psycho, Ricky?" the caravaneer asked.

"What? Who the fuck said anything about that?"

Looking closer at the man, Layla noticed his eyes were dilated more than they were supposed to be, and given his violent nature…

"Fuck this, you broads are crazy." He stormed off and refused to talk to anyone the rest of the night.

**Day 3**

"Jenny's got it all wrong," Chris said matter-of-factly. The guard was arguing tactics with his partner again. "If you blow a guy up, you don't get to loot them. What's the point? That's the inherent charm of popping heads off: keep your loot gore-free."

"Well, I can get on board with that," Layla said thoughtfully. "Once you get blood on stuff, it doesn't come off easy."

"Exactly," Chris said.

"But if you're too dead to loot the body, no one's gonna care if there's blood on it" Jenny replied. "That's why you blow them up."

"Yeah, about that…" Layla eyed the grenade launcher on the woman's back. "Can I try that?"

The guard sighed loudly. "I suppose."

A few moments later Jenny was explaining how to hold the launcher when Cass noted Ricky ambling up to her.

"Hey gorgeous, you know what they say about redheads?"

"No," Cass said, glowering. "And I don't want to know."

"Gotta check if the curtains match the drapes." The man seemed unconcerned about the glare he was getting. "So when can I book your drape inspection?"

"How about I book your coffin-fitting?" she growled. He still seemed unconcerned.

"Don't be stuck up, baby. Have you heard about my third nut?"

Cass stared blankly at him.

"I grew up near Dayglow, see? It glows in the dark. I'll drop trou later tonight so you can get a look. It helps you see what you're working with."

"Good, gives me something to aim at," Cass said, reaching for her cowboy repeater.

"Woah! I was just trying to be friendly!" He started off in Stella's direction, muttering. "What a bitch…"

Cass glared after him, repeater still in hand. She noticed Boone had found his way to her side.

"Trouble?" he asked, glaring at Ricky as he suddenly scurried away from Stella, probably threatened by her as well.

"Nah," the redhead grinned at the sniper. "Not yet anyway."

**Day 5**

"Have you been to Zion, Jed?" Layla asked while the group was taking a break. The sun was directly overhead, and everyone was tired. The Courier was perched on a rock, looking down the path ahead through her binoculars.

"Not inside," Jed answered. "I've been in the outskirts though."

"Oh… What are the New Canaanites like?"

"Religious, really religious. But they do right by us and take care of their own. Definitely not like a cult, and I've seen quite a few in my time."

"Really? Like what?" The Courier sounded interested, and Jed laughed.

"Nothing too exciting. Well, except for the Tea Greens…" Stella laughed at that.

"Those freaks! That was the first and only orgy I'd ever seen."

"Holy shit, what have you been getting into without me, Jed?" Cass said, nearly choking from her canteen.

"I certainly didn't get into anything that night," Jed answered. "But they did offer. And to be fair, they were one of the least threatening cults I've dealt with. Most try to kill you if you get near them."

"Come on, Jed, you haven't lived until you've been in a cult orgy," Chris said, then grunted when Jenny elbowed him. "What? It's true."

"Do I even want to know?" Layla said, peering down at him.

"They had these mushrooms. People used to use them in pre-war times, but they glow now. So when you eat them, the walls start melting and your skin gets super sensitive." He grinned fondly. "That was the greatest night of my life."

Cass laughed Layla's open-mouthed expression. "You just blew her mind, Chris."

"Well, it wasn't all glow-shrooms and orgies," he continued thoughtfully, still ignoring the poisonous glare Jenny was giving him. "Apparently, if you mentioned sand, they got violent. Well we were in the fucking desert, so it came up pretty damn quick. And then we got out of there pretty damn quick."

Throwing off her shock, Layla got back to the matter at hand. "Have the New Canaanites ever gone silent before?" That took some of the mirth from the group.

"No." Jed answered, and Layla bit her lip.

"Does the Legion operate in the area?"

"Not that I'm aware of, but the White Legs have been trouble in those parts before. They're brutal, kill indiscriminately." The sober tone lightened slightly. "But the New Canaanites are deadly when pushed. There's probably a much simpler explanation."

Layla frowned, hoping he was right. Jed continued after a minute.

"Oh, I almost forgot; When we get to Zion or New Canaan, don't mention Joshua Graham or the Burned Man."

"Joshua Graham?" Layla closed an eye. "The first Legion Legate?"

"That's the one," Jed answered.

"Why do the New Canaanites care? I know the Legion get their skirts up in a twist about him…"

"He was one of them," Stella answered. "I think the New Canaanites were ashamed of what he did. Gave them all a black eye."

"Can't say I blame them," Jed added. "He was supposed to be one tough son-of-a-bitch, mean to match, too."

"Wasn't supposed to be the best at tactics though," Layla said.

"I thought you didn't know about him?" Cass asked.

"Well, I didn't know much about his past, but I talked to Chief Hanlon about him once…"

*.*.*

Layla opened the double doors she'd found on Camp Golf's second floor to find a deck overlooking Lake Las Vegas. Smiling, she stepped out and admired the view.

"Back west you don't see many of these," came a voice from her side. An older man with a scraggly white beard was smiling at her from his seat near a comm station. "Lakes, I mean. They're all dried up, drained. Nothing but mud and dust now.

It's a different feeling, watching the sun rise over the water. But you spend enough time looking at it and you get used to it. That's all a ranger's life is now. Looking East."

"I don't think we've met…" the Courier said politely, and the old man laughed.

"They call me the chief, but Hanlon's fine. And you're the Courier everyone's been talking about. Or Lake Las Vegas' mermaid as we here at Camp Golf say."

Layla raised an eyebrow at that, then noticed the binoculars on the table next to him. Looking out at the lake again, she felt her cheeks start to burn as she noticed one of her favorite swimming spots was very visible from here.

Hanlon laughed. "Can I do something for you, kiddo?"

"Just looking around," the Courier said, definitely blushing now. "Wait, Chief Hanlon? The one who orchestrated the Hoover Dam battle?"

"Yeah, that's me," the man said, sounding suddenly tired. "That seems like a long time ago, but it's about to come back again, isn't it?"

"It'll be different this time, though. Caesar's dead," Layla said, hoping that'd brighten the old man's mood.

"Yeah, we've heard stories." He leaned back in his chair. "Something about a ghoul, a 1st Recon sniper and a courier stumbling out once the place was shot up. I figured it was our mermaid."

Layla felt the blush come back to her cheeks. "How do you think the Legion will do without Caesar?"

"Lanius is still going to attack the Dam, and he's as brutal as he is smart. His predecessor wasn't as clever tactically."

"The Malpais Legate?" Layla asked, and the chief nodded. "What was he like?"

"He was tough and ruthless. But he clung to the same strategies. That's how we got him at Boulder City. Losing the Dam was the worst defeat the Legion had ever had. Joshua Graham helped found the Legion, but Caesar needed to set an example, so the praetorians covered him in pitch, lit him on fire and down the Grand Canyon he went."

"That's some example," Layla said, chewing her lip. "Guess that was it for him, huh?"

"It's not that clear cut. Some people think he's still alive, call him the Burned Man…"

*.*.*

"He mentioned the rangers and 1st Recon took a bunch of shots at him, and he survived them all…" Layla said thoughtfully. Cass turned to look at Boone.

"Don't tell me you popped him one, cowboy."

"No," Boone said flatly. "Manny did though."

"Really?" Layla jumped down from her rock. "What happened?"

"He lived."

"Huh. Well if the guy lived through getting shot in the head a bunch of times and falling down the Grand Canyon on fire, I don't think I want to meet him…"

*.*.*

Layla splashed water on her face, enjoying it while she could. They'd been following Meadowvalley Wash, but now had to veer away from the river. She was going to miss its clean water. The spot where they'd stopped was about waist deep, and for a moment she thought about stripping down and jumping in.

If it had been just her and Boone, that wouldn't be a problem. If it had been her, Boone and Cass, still not a problem. Hell, if it had been her, Boone, Cass, Jed, Stella, Chris and Jenny, it wouldn't be a problem. But there was one thing keeping her out of that river-

"Hey, Sugar Tits! Wanna go skinny dipping?" Ricky startled her, subsequently ending all thoughts of going in the water.

"Uh… no."

"Don't worry. Ricky will keep you nice and safe."

"Yeah, not interested," Layla said firmly. The idiot just kept grinning at her. The Courier usually had little trouble keeping unwanted suitors at bay, but Ricky was a special kind of perverted bastard. She really didn't have it in her to wallop the guy like Cass had suggested, trying again for her usually effective diplomatic approach. Which meant mentioning her gay husband.

"Ricky, there's something you've got to know about me. I'm not really available."

"Baby, you don't have to be desperate," he said before she could continue. Layla gave him a confused look. "Washed up loser soldiers aren't anything to get worked up about. Not when you can make it with Dead-Eye Ricky. You give me a chance to get balls deep in your pootie tang and you'll forget all about that ugly fucker."

*.*.*

"I don't think it's necessary. We're still ahead of schedule," Jed said thoughtfully as he and Cass discussed their supplies. "If we keep up this pace we'll be fine on water…"

"Well, as long as we-" The woman was cut off by a loud slap. Both she and Jed turned to see Layla storming their way with a particularly furious look. Behind her, Ricky was holding his now very red cheek and swearing loudly.

"Next time shoot him in the dick," Cass called out to her. "Problem solved."

**Day 8**

"The ladies… egas… It's you… as the day w…" Layla frowned as her Pip-Boy finally lost Radio New Vegas' signal.

"Not so good with that thing, are you baby?" Ricky said as he came up to her. Layla bit back a grimace. "Don't worry. I'm doing shit with this thing so advanced it'd make your head spin."

The Courier looked at Ricky's Pip-Boy, eyebrows raising.

"Yours is locked up… and it looks like the reboot button is missing."

"What are you talking about?" He looked down at the machine on his arm, giving it a shake. "Looks fine to me."

"Has it worked at any point of this trip?" Layla was pretty sure they wouldn't need the machines until they got to the canyons of Zion. If they hadn't picked up Layla, they would have been screwed…

"Do you even know how to use that thing?"

"It's fine. It works just fine. Don't ruin this for me!" Ricky sounded somewhere between panicked and angry. Layla bit her lip. If she blew the whistle on him, Jed and Cass would throw him out on his ass. There wasn't any trace of civilization for miles.

"Maybe we can get it working before we get to Zion…"

"If you want to tool around my parts, that's fine, baby."

Layla glared at him.

*.*.*

"Enjoying your return to caravan life, Cass?" Layla asked as they sat next to the fire.

"It's just as good as I remembered," the other woman said, smiling. The moon was overhead by now, surrounded by an uncountable number of stars. Only she, Cass and Boone were awake. She grinned at the sniper.

"What do you think, Boone? Once we get the Mojave sorted out, we'll all go into the caravan business. You can be the guard, Cass can handle the negotiations, I've got the Pip-Boy and I can cook."

The sniper merely grinned at her, and she turned back to Cass, who was frowning.

"I shouldn't have sold my caravan."

Layla's face fell at that, but she recovered a moment later. "Do you really think so?"

"Yeah… Why?"

"Did you ever happen to pick up the caps McLafferty owed you?"

"No, didn't seem right." The glum look was replaced with a suspicious one as she looked back at the Courier's smug expression. "Why?"

"Well, the thing is, I kinda forgot about the contract. Especially after we found out McLafferty was behind the caravan attacks."

"And?"

"And…" Layla reached over to her pack, digging through it. A moment later, she produced the contract for Cassidy Caravans.

"See, I never got it back to McLafferty… so technically, I guess you never sold your caravan."

"The contract's still binding, even if she hasn't-"

"Whoops!" The Courier tossed the paper into the fire. Cass watched it burn for a moment, a hard-to-read look on her face. It broke into a grin a moment later.

"You're a sneaky little witch, aren't you?"

"I have my moments." Layla smiled, standing up. "And now I'm going to bed." She got up and moved over to Jenny, giving her a gentle shake.

"Rise and shine, you're up," she said softly. The guard grumbled as she sat up. After giving her a few moments to wake all the way up, Layla moved to Boone. Prodding him gently with her foot she yawned.

"Come on, sleepy time. You too, Ms. Cassidy."

"Sure thing, mother."

*.*.*

Later, Layla woke up from a deep sleep, her hazy mind becoming aware of someone climbing into her sleeping bag.

"No Cass," she muttered. "I don't care how cold it is. Stay in your own damn bag."

"Don't worry baby, I've got all the heat you need."

The Courier's eyes snapped open. She turned to find Ricky halfway into her bag already. She screamed and started kicking.

"Woah, baby! Calm down. I like them fiery and all but-"

"GET OUT!" she cried, trying to wiggling out of the cramped bag. A moment later, Ricky was suddenly pulled away. By the time Layla had untangled herself, she saw Boone dragging the 'Vault dweller' by the collar while the man tried to get to his feet. Soon the sniper had brought him to the edge of the camp and thrown him on the ground.

"What's going on?" Jed said, sitting up.

"Ricky," Stella answered, motioning towards the two men.

"Hey now, he's an important part of the caravan," Jed said warningly as Boone pulled the rifle off his back.

"His Pip-Boy doesn't even work," Layla grumbled, finally out of her bag.

"Oh. Well, don't leave his body too close to camp. It'll attract coyotes," the caravan boss said, lying back down.

"Hold on, man. I didn't do anything! You're not gonna..." Ricky trailed off as Boone closed the breech on his rifle.

"You've got twenty seconds before I start shooting," the sniper said menacingly.

"And you'd sure as fuck better not try to follow us," Cass added as she came up beside Boone, throwing Ricky's pack at his feet.

"You-you're not gonna leave me here?"

"Twenty... nineteen... eighteen..."

"FUCK!" Grabbing his bag, Ricky scurried away, spewing swears as he went. Once he was out of sight, Cass returned to the camp, but Boone remained.

Layla was sitting at the fire, making a disgusted face. "There's not enough hot water in the world to wash off the grossness," she said to Cass as the older woman sat next to her.

"I told you to threaten him, but you had to be nice. There's no way to get through a Psycho-addled idiot except violence," Cass said sagely.

"I didn't think he'd take 'no' to mean 'come on in!' Besides you-" the Courier was stopped by the sound of Boone firing his rifle. Both women looked at each other, and Layla got to her feet, moving over to her other companion.

"Did you just shoot him?" she asked cautiously. He looked angrier than she'd seen him in a long time.

"Warning shot, only wounded. Tried to double back," Boone answered stiffly. Taking his eyes off the scope for the first time since Ricky had moved out of sight, he looked at Layla. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I... Thank you." Boone nodded, and she continued. "Are you going to come back to camp?"

"Later. He's already tried to come back once..." he said, looking through his scope again.

Layla frowned, but nodded. She stayed by his side for a few minutes.

"Go on and sleep," Boone said, still watching through his scope. "He's not coming back."

"I'll go in a minute," she responded, and he didn't argue.

*.*.*

Stella sat next to Cass, accepting the other woman's offered whiskey. Taking a drink, she watched as the Courier said something to Boone that made him finally crack a grin.

"So, are those two together, or what?" she asked the redhead. Cass laughed.

"Yeah, they just don't know it yet."

**Day 9**

"So what is their story anyway?" Stella asked Cass the next morning. Both women were taking up the rear of the group.

"Who? Layla and Boone?" the redhead said, getting a nod from Stella. "Oh they're just annoying. If they had any sense they'd just fuck and get it over with."

"So what's keeping them?"

"He's a widower. Legion killed his wife a year ago. He's had some other trouble besides that, and Layla's trying to give him time."

"What's wrong with that? Seems awful considerate to me."

Cass snorted. "That held water at the beginning of this little adventure, but now they're all hot and bothered for each other and won't admit it. Watch. Hey Layla!" she called to the younger woman. The Courier had been further ahead talking to Jenny and Chris, but excused herself and slowed her pace until the other two women caught up.

"What's up?"

"Stella here was wondering if Boone's available."

"What!" the girl cried. "I mean, uh, I thought you were with Jed? I- he- I think he's… You'd have to ask- I'm sure he… I don't know." She scurried away from the women and quickly walked back to the front of the group to talk to Jed. Cass laughed.

"Well, we already know she's got a thing for him…" Stella said, not convinced, even if she was amused by the girl's response.

"Fine, here's the real test. Hey Boone!" The sniper looked her way. He'd been keeping a close eye on the surrounding area. He made his way over to them.

"Yeah?"

"You wouldn't know anything about Layla holding out for someone, would you? I couldn't even get past second base with her."

The sniper stopped walking and stared at the caravaneer with a stunned look. "I uh… You what?"

"Do you know what it is she's waiting for?"

"I… don't…" A look of relief came over his face as he noticed something behind Cass and Stella. "Excuse me." He moved past them and shot a cazador that was barely visible from where they stood, then took out the rest of the swarm before they could get within anyone else's range. He hurriedly moved toward Jenny and Chris before Cass could call him back.

"See?"

"Yeah, I think I see what you mean."

**Day 10**

The Last Chance Bar was aptly named and revered among travelers in the area. Stella sighed luxuriously as she sat down. The rest of their caravan crowded around the table. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits. The bar was moderately quiet tonight. There was another group, lead apparently by a sour-looking blonde woman and a giant of a man. They seemed to be ignoring them, as were the few other scattered people at the tables and bar.

"First round's on me, folks," the caravan boss said. "Enjoy tonight. This is the last taste of civilization until we get to New Canaan." He smiled further. "We even have rooms for the night."

The mood improved further, and Stella was soon smiling into a beer. Cass laughed at her side.

"Layla, get a real damn drink," she said to the Courier, who looked up from her sarsaparilla.

"Screw you, old lady. Sarsaparilla's the only drink I need."

Cass was undeterred. "They've got tequila here."

"They do?" The girl sat up. "Why didn't you say so?"

Tequila was one of the rarest liquors in the Mojave. Stella had only ever found it this far into Utah. The Courier was all smiles now as she turned to Boone.

"You ever have tequila?"

"No."

"Want one?"

"No thanks," the sniper said, nursing a bottle of water.

"Oh quit acting like Ricky's gonna show up swinging his dick around the minute you let your guard down," Cass said, kicking her legs up on the table. "Stella's stopping at one beer, so she'll keep an eye out for trouble."

The caravan guard almost protested, but the redhead elbowed her under the table, and she kept her mouth shut.

"Go on and get a round. I'll pay if you two get it," Cass continued.

Boone looked like he was going to refuse again, but relented at the insistent look Layla was giving him. A few moments later they were at the bar.

"What do you mean I'm stopping at one beer?" Stella groused at Cass, who shrugged.

"They weren't gonna believe I'd do it. Take one for the team."

"Why am I taking one for the team?"

"We're gonna see if liquid courage will give those two the push they need," the redhead said, nodding to the two at the bar. Looking their way, Stella watched as Layla laughed at something the bartender said, then started putting shot glasses in Boone's waiting hands.

"Fine," Stella groaned. "Next time you get be the only one who's sober." Soon Boone and Layla returned, drinks in hand.

"Thanks, Cass," the girl smiled.

"What the fuck? Why did you get so many?" the caravaneer cried.

"You said get a round."

"Well I fucking didn't want one!"

"Well, you should have been clearer…" Layla said. "I'll take if off your hands if you don't want it."

"You're a goddamned cheat," Cass grumbled, but Stella felt her nudge her under the table with her leg. The guard sighed. This had better be worth it.

*.*.*

Cass shook her head at the sight before her. The table had gotten considerably more animated as the tequila started flowing. They were starting to get dirty looks from the other group, which Cass returned. Especially to the blonde who was all piss and vinegar in their direction.

Turning her attention back to her group, she found Layla was deep in thought.

"Ummm… I'd…" The Courier laughed as she continued their conversation. "I've got it, I've got it… I'd put a mine in a box of Sugar Bombs, then when it goes off and you're covered in breakfast and sadness, the milk blows."

"Why is the milk exploding?" Boone asked, grinning more than Cass had ever seen him do in the past.

"Well obviously I put C4 in the milk, so even if you survive both explosions, your milk will taste all weird." She smiled smugly, then snatched the beret off his head, putting it on.

"I'd like my beret back, please," the sniper said, trying to sound intimidating, but laughing midway through his sentence. Layla giggled.

"No. Your turn."

"I'd put a grenade in my beret."

The Courier started laughing, hiccupping as she did so until she was gasping for air. Boone grabbed his hat off the girl and put it back on while she tried to catch her breath.

"There's something wrong with you two," Chris said as he and Jenny started laughing with them. Layla stood as soon as she'd caught her breath.

"New song on the jukebox time!" She stepped away from her chair just as the blonde who'd been giving their group a sneer most of the night happened by. The woman knocked into the Courier, who stumbled back, landing on Boone's lap.

"Oh, sorry!" she said, then started laughing. "Grenade in the beret!"

Boone laughed with her that time, and Cass sat up. She poked Stella and nodded in their direction with a grin. She knew it, just a little social lubricant and they'd-

"Fucking murderer…" the pissy blonde muttered, and Cass noticed she hadn't moved away when she'd knocked into Layla. The Courier's eyes widened.

"What'd you say?" Layla said as she rose from Boone's lap.

"I said your boyfriend's a murderer," the woman said angrily. "Fucking baby kill-"

She didn't get a chance to finish before Layla threw a punch into her face. The woman staggered back, shocked for a moment, and the bar suddenly got quiet.

"You whore!" the blonde cried as she swung at the Courier, catching her in the stomach. The brunette grunted, then backhanded the other woman. The rest of the group at Cass' table had been staring in stunned silence as they watched their least violent member land another solid blow to the other woman's face. It wasn't until the blonde's friends started sneaking up on the Courier that Cass moved.

She thought she'd heard Stella say something about calming the group down, but Cass instead grabbed the chair she'd been sitting on and broke it over the head of a woman about to close in on Layla.

That cleared all the seats in the building, and moments later everyone was fighting everyone else. Cass covered her face as a mustached man tried to punch her, then clobbered him. As he went down, she saw the giant man who'd been with the blonde had gotten Boone in a headlock.

Before he got the chance to pummel the sniper, Cass broke another chair over his head. The man stumbled, but didn't go down like the caravaneer had hoped. It'd been enough to get Boone free, and he threw an uppercut into the giant's face. The huge man staggered, and Cass tripped him before he regained his footing. He didn't get back up.

"Where's Layla?" Boone shouted over the sounds of the ruckus. Cass looked around and caught sight of the girl just as she'd leapt onto a leather-clad man's back just as he tried to swing at Jed. She only managed to whack him over the head a few times before he threw her off onto a table. Chris tackled the man in leather before he could retaliate, and Layla got to her feet on the table.

"Oh shit," Cass said, pointing her out to the sniper, who immediately started her way. Before they reached her, she leapt on top of a group that had ganged up on Stella. Just as they got to her, Cass found the Courier with a man in a headlock while she was punching another.

"Mother _fucker_!" The caravaneer ducked as Layla sent one of them flying.

*.*.*

"I can't help but feel partially responsible for this…" Layla said sheepishly as she dabbed antibiotic ointment in a cut on Cass' cheek. The fight had died down soon after Chris and Boone had gotten into the thick of the opposing force and sent the blonde's group retreating.

"Oh really? I don't know why you'd feel that way," Cass said, but she grinned. "That was some fight. Haven't been in one that good in a long while."

"I-uh… I don't think the owner's happy," the Courier said, peeking in the man's direction.

"He'll get over it," the older woman said. "Besides, a girl's gotta defend her man's honor."

"Oh fuck you," Layla grumbled, making Cass laugh.

"Don't feel bad, 'cause I know you do. No one got more hurt than a bump or bruise… except that bitch who started it, but she deserved it."

"Don't remind me." Layla had split the woman's lip and given her a pretty bad black eye. She grinned marginally. "I didn't know I could fight that well."

"Neither did I. Remind me not to call Boone names around you."

**Day 13**

"We'll be in Zion tomorrow," Jed said, noting his caravan's tired faces. "So just keep your eyes on the prize, folks."

"Also keep your eyes on the canyons," Stella added. "If there are any White Legs in the area…"

"They don't usually come this far south," Jed replied. "But don't let that stop you from watching out for them." Chris and Boone seemed to take that to heart and kept their gazes elevated while Jenny and Stella watched for more immediate threats.

"How long are we staying in Zion?" Layla asked, scanning the canyons ahead of them as well.

"We'll trade with the missionaries, rest up a day or two, then move on to New Canaan."

"Great." The girl smiled. "A new town means new trouble to get into."

"Oh that's just perfect," Cass grumbled. "You need more trouble like you need another hole in your head."

* * *

><p>Thank you all for reading, and holy smokes, thanks for all the reviews! You kids are going to make me full of myself! See you Saturday (for an admittedly shorter chapter!)<p> 


	3. Deliver Us From Evil

Thanks to waterpeach4, I can't read the last chapter without ragtime playing. Everyone be warned: the train's pulling up to Spoiler City. Enjoy the new chapter, see you on Wednesday and thanks for reading!

* * *

><p>"It's beautiful!" Layla cried as the caravan emerged from the cavern onto a ridge overlooking Zion. Ahead of them was a huge canyon of red and orange rock, cut through by clear blue water.<p>

"Yeah, well, I hope we haven't just gotten ourselves stuck here," Stella said, turning back to Jed. "There's no going back the way we came…"

"I heard you the first fifteen times," Jed said, sounding unconcerned. "We'll leave the way the New Canaanites travel."

"You'd better be right, or we'll wind up tribals after all," the guard muttered.

"I call war chief!" Layla said while examining a plant on the ground.

"You can be the drunken bar fight war chief," Cass said, squinting as she looked across the canyon. "Christ it's bright here." She looked Boone's way. "You keep any extra sunglasses?"

"I've got them," Layla said, digging her pack.

"Why do you have them?" the older woman asked as she accepted the glasses.

"I carry the extra clothes, med supplies and food, he carries all the stuff we're going to sell," Layla answered, moving to look at another plant.

Cass shook her head.

"Look! A deciduous tree! And it has leaves!" the Courier said, delighted.

"A what tree?" Chris asked, moving up to look as well.

"Deciduous. Leafy. And their leaves change color and drop once a year. See how they're yellow?"

"Uh huh…" The guard sounded amused. "You sure you don't want to be the tribe's nerd?"

She gave him a playful shove. "You can be the tribal jerkwad."

The guard stared at her.

"It's a word," she added.

They practically had to drag Layla from the tree as they continued. The view from the ridge showed a vast expanse of the canyon. There were a few buildings visible and what looked like an crashed airplane. The whole group stopped to stare. From where they stood, it would be easy to forget the bombs ever fell.

"Wait… did you hear something?" Jed said, and Layla automatically looked Boone's way. He'd gone stiff as he scanned the area, scope up to his eye.

"Something isn't right…"

"There's something in the brush up there," Chris said, and Boone swung his rifle in the direction he'd indicated.

"Where?"

"Above the second ridge. I can't make it-" He was cut off as what looked like a high caliber shot took most of his head off.

"_Chris_!" Layla screamed as Boone pushed her down behind a rock.

"It's the White Legs!" Jed yelled, nearly getting hit by another shot.

"Snipers!" Boone cried to the others. "GET DOWN!" Layla hadn't realized he'd been speaking to anyone in particular until she saw Jenny was still in the open, shooting her grenade launcher in the direction the shot had come from.

The man who'd shot Chris clattered down the canyon in pieces, but before the guard had a chance to find cover, a grenade landed near her feet from another source in the canyon. She didn't have time to move before the explosive tore her apart.

"There's some coming up the path!" Cass shouted, trying to line up a shot from her spot near Layla. Before she could fire, another shot from a sniper nearly caught her, and she ducked back down.

"Stella! We're pinned!" the redhead cried. Layla then heard the rapid fire from Stella's laser rifle suddenly stop. Looking over her rock, she saw the woman on the ground, bleeding from her stomach.

"Stella!" Jed cried. "Don't you die on me, woman!" He fired at the group that had started pouring in. There were a few loud cracks, and two more of their attackers fell from the canyon.

"Snipers are down!" Boone yelled, and Layla and Cass leapt up from their rock, trying to help Jed. Before either managed to fire a shot, the caravan boss caught several rounds from an auto pistol and fell.

"NO!" Cass cried, firing wildly into the remaining White Legs. Boone picked off the ones she missed as Layla ducked down to dig out her medical equipment.

"Clear!" Boone yelled, and Layla ran to check on Jed. His open eyes stared up at her, and she found no pulse. He'd caught several rounds to the chest, neck, and one to the head. Choking back a sob, she moved on to Stella, who was still breathing.

"Hold on," she said, quickly kneeling down to the woman. The guard had taken two large caliber rounds to the stomach, and the dark blood was coming too fast from her wounds. Layla bunched up the gauze and pressed down on the wounds with one hand, using the other to grab a stimpak and pull the cork with her teeth.

"Too late…" Stella said weakly. Layla frowned as she injected the stimpak.

"Just stay with me, you're gonna be…" The woman's eyes had closed, and Layla frantically dug another stimpak out. She got it free from its cork and injected it as Stella's pulse slowed. The stim wasn't doing its job, and Stella's pulse stopped.

"No no no, come on." Layla was covered in the woman's blood now, and she dug for another stim.

"Layla, she's dead…" Cass said stiffly. The Courier looked up at her and saw her face had gone hard.

"There's more coming." Boone had rejoined them. They didn't move immediately, and he grimaced.

"They're coming from behind us. We have to go!" He reached down and pulled Layla to her feet. She looked around at the dead for a moment, then started down the path they'd been following originally. Two more of the tribals were waiting for them, but Boone shot them both before either could raise their guns.

A rope bridge stretched out before them, leading to the other side of the canyon. There was no other way to go, so they started to cross it. Looking back, Layla saw a group of White Legs approaching from behind.

"Keep going!" Boone said as he started picking them off. Cass lingered near him, firing into the group as well.

"GO!" he yelled, and both Layla and Cass kept moving across the bridge. Just before Layla reached the other side, the bridge lurched.

Looking back, she saw one of the White Legs chopping the ropes of the bridge with a fire axe.

"Holy fuck, RUN!" Layla cried, getting to the other side of the canyon. Once her feet hit the stone, she looked back again. The last rope of the bridge was chopped just as Boone shot the man with the axe. Layla watched in horror as the bridge started to fall, Boone and Cass still on it.

Still anchored to Layla's side of the canyon, the bridge swung down, and her friends were tossed off. Both landed in the shallow basin of water at the canyon floor. Neither moved.

"No no no no no." Layla frantically dug her binoculars out of her pack. Looking down, she could see both Cass and Boone had landed face up in the water. There was blood coming from Cass' side but none from either hers or Boone's heads. She couldn't discount internal damage, and tried to at least confirm they were still breathing.

Before she could still her own shaking enough to see, a shot ricocheted off the rock she was kneeling on. Looking up from her binoculars, she saw two White Legs on the other side of the fallen bridge.

For a moment she thought about running, but it occurred to her the bastards might shoot Cass and Boone while they were helpless. Gritting her teeth, she pulled her old 10mm and started firing at the two men across the canyon. The first shot took out one instantly, and he flopped off the canyon. It took most of her clip's ammo before she hit the other several times in the chest.

Panting, Layla looked back down at Cass and Boone. Neither had moved yet. She had to get down to them, and if they were hurt she'd need to get to them soon. She took off in a run down the path on her side of the canyon, pulling up the area maps on her Pip-Boy.

Running as fast as she could through the rocky terrain, she nearly stumbled to the ground as she heard a roar further along the path. Ahead of her was a huge animal fighting a gigantic gecko. The furry creature was on all four legs and looked like a pointy, mutated bear. It slashed the gecko's throat open and tossed its body off the ridge like it was a toy.

Layla stood frozen for a moment, staring at the creature. It was five-times her size, and apparently it had seen her. Backpedaling, she pulled the shotgun off her back and started pumping rounds into it. It reared up just as it reached her and swung one of its paws, knocking her over. She landed with a cry as pain exploded across her chest, stunning her.

She could see the thing coming at her as she tried to make her body move.

*.*.*

Follows-Chalk picked his way carefully toward the sound of the yao guai roar he had heard, trying to get to the highest possible ground. He'd planned to double back around another ridge to avoid it, but thought he'd heard a woman scream.

Hopping up on a large rock, he found it was a giant yao guai, and it was indeed attacking a woman. The girl was on the ground, struggling to stand as the creature stalked her way. It had a few bullet holes in its flank already, and Follows-Chalk quickly leveled his pistol at the creature and fired rapidly into it as it charged at the girl.

The yao guai hadn't been expecting him, clearly, and turned to face him. The tribal thanked his training as he shot the creature square through the eye, dropping it. He cautiously moved to the yao guai, giving it a poke to make sure it was dead. It didn't move.

Grinning, Follows-Chalk realized he'd be getting a rather impressive tattoo for this kill, then turned his attention to the girl the creature had been attacking. He walked around the yao guai and moved closer to the woman. She was sobbing quietly, and Follows-Chalk worried she'd been wounded badly. Judging by her clothes, she was from beyond Zion, more than likely from civilization.

"Hey, are you hurt?"

The girl started, looking up at him. She looked panicked as she reached for the gun on the ground nearby.

"Woah, hey! I won't hurt you!" That stopped her, and she looked him over. Follows-Chalk noticed her eyes lingering on his tattoos.

"Did you kill that… thing?"

"Yeah, that was a Yao Guai. They're dangerous." He peered at the girl, still worried. "Are you hurt?"

"No, not badly." She pulled her arm away from her side and looked down at the spot the yao guai had hit her. Her armor was severely torn, but she'd only suffered a minor cut. Looking up at him, she quickly got to her feet. "…You're not a White Leg, right?"

"No, I'm a Dead Horse. Our tribes are enemies."

"Okay." She sounded slightly relieved. "Listen, two of my friends fell to the canyon floor. I have get to them."

Follows-Chalk frowned, "If they fell that far…"

"They're alive. Thank you for helping me, but I've got to go!" She started running, checking the machine on her arm again.

"Wait! I'll help you!" he called as he took off after her.

"I… Thank you," she said over her shoulder, still running. "We need to hurry."

"All right." Follows-Chalk kept his eyes on the surrounding area, mindful for more yao guai or White Legs as the girl kept her eyes on the machine on her arm. Once they reached the canyon floor, the girl ran at full-speed into the shallow water. She came to a stop a few moments later, and Follows-Chalk saw the remains of a rope bridge swinging from one side of the canyon above them.

There was only a dead White Leg, face down in the water.

"They're not here?" the girl said, sounding confused. "Then they must be okay! Right?" She looked back to him pleadingly.

"I don't know," the scout said. "There's not much to go by…" He moved to the dead White Leg, turning the body. "What happened?" Looking back to the girl, he frowned as she bit her lip, clearly trying to fight off tears.

"We were coming up to New Canaan to trade for a caravan company. T-they killed almost everyone."

Follows-Chalk nodded. "You're some kind of lucky they didn't kill you too. The White Legs don't leave survivors." He looked down at the body before him. "This one's ammunition is gone, but not his weapon."

"What did he have for a weapon?" the girl asked, walking up to the body. Follows-Chalk motioned to the large rifle, and the girl smirked a little.

"That was Boone then. Anti-materiel rifles are really heavy, but he wouldn't pass up the ammo…" She blew out a breath. "Okay, they must be okay… We just need to find them."

Follows-Chalk frowned. "There's nothing here that shows where they've gone. And it will be dark soon." He imagined she wanted to search for her friends, but there wasn't much to be done. "My people have a camp not far from here. We can heal you and Joshua, our leader, might be able to help you. He is a great man."

The girl looked at him, searching his face for a moment before she sighed heavily.

"Okay," she said, barely above a whisper, looking at the spot where her friends were supposed to be.

"I am Follows-Chalk," the tribal said, and the girl gave him a sad smile.

"I'm Layla, and I'm cursed."

If Follows-Chalk had been a superstitious man, which he wasn't, he'd have worried at that remark. "You might not want to say that to the rest of my tribe…" The smile left the girl's face as she bit her lip.

Frowning, the tribal tried to think of something that would cheer her up. "I am just a scout in training, but maybe Joshua will let some of our full scouts help you tomorrow. We'll be able to find your friends."

A fraction of a smile touched her face. "Okay…"

He nodded, and they started for the camp. The tribal pointed out a few of the landmarks as they went, and saw her face harden as they came across the poles that held up severed heads of White Leg sentries . Layla looked at him questioningly.

"Our shaman says their souls are trapped there, but Joshua says it shows we mean business against the White Legs."

The girl nodded slowly, and they continued. She was silent for most of the trip, and the tribal understood she was in mourning.

"I'm sorry for your friends," he offered, feeling he had to say something.

"Thank you," she said. "We just have to find them…"

Follows-Chalk didn't want her to get her hopes up. If they were injured, there was a good chance they could have been overwhelmed by another attack, either by White Legs or any of the dangerous creatures in the canyon. "They may have been attacked further on…"

"You don't know Cass or Boone," she said, sounding momentarily amused. "I don't think you can kill either of them, not if they don't want you to."

"That sounds like our leader," Follows-Chalk said as the camp became visible in the waning light. "He survived wounds and burns that would kill almost anyone."

It took a moment for the tribal to notice that Layla had slowed her pace behind him. He turned, wondering at the surprised look on the girl's face.

"What did you say his name was? Your leader?"

"Joshua Graham."

The girl suddenly looked like she was going to faint.


	4. Bear Ye Another's Burdens

Layla stood in the Dead Horse camp, staring into the cave Follows-Chalk had led her to. Joshua Graham, the Burned Man, was waiting for her inside. She trusted the scout, even though she'd only just met him, but everything she had ever heard about the Burned Man said he was a ruthless, unkillable monster.

She still hadn't moved. She couldn't just stand there all day; Cass and Boone were somewhere in Zion, probably hurt, and there was no way she'd be able to find them on her own.

"Um… are you okay there?" Follows-Chalk said. He'd been standing at her side, probably wondering why she hadn't moved in a few minutes.

"Yes." Squaring her shoulders, she stepped into the cave. They wound their way through the tunnel, which was dimly lit by torches. Layla could see several tables with various animal skins and pelts on them and various tools everywhere. It must have been some kind of workshop.

They walked into a large cavern with a raised section of floor. Between two brahmin skulls on posts sat a man wrapped in bandages from head-to-toe under his clothes. He was sorting through a pile of guns on the table in front of him. Layla felt her stomach drop into her knees as she watched him carefully check each gun before stacking it neatly with the others. He noticed them a moment later and sat up straight, looking the Courier over.

"We should have given you a better welcome for your first trip to Zion, but I hear the White Legs beat us to it."

Layla blinked. His deep, gravely voice bounced off the cavern walls and reverberated in her head, and she was surprised at the kindness in his tone.

"I don't know if you were close to any of the members of your group, but for what it's worth, you have my sympathy." He went back to sorting through the guns as he continued. "I pray for the safety of all who come to Zion, even Gentiles. But we can't expect God to do all the work."

"I… Thank you," The Courier stuttered. "You-you're the…"

"The Burned Man?" he said solemnly. "Or the Malpais Legate?" He set the gun in his hands down on the table. "You have no reason to believe me, but my days of hurting the innocent are over. They were burned away along with my misplaced pride and foolishness." He suddenly sounded amused. "Or at least I'd hoped with my foolishness."

He looked at her, and Layla got the feeling he was waiting to see if she would run screaming. Part of her felt like doing exactly that, but she took a moment to weigh the situation. The Dead Horses were the only people in Zion so far who hadn't tried to kill her. Graham was their leader. And underlining it all, she still needed help if she was going to find Cass and Boone. Seeing that he was still waiting for her to answer, she said the first thing that came to mind.

"How do you know so much about what happened to me?"

"The Dead Horses are more than capable scouts," the Burned Man answered. "There is little that happens in Zion that I don't hear about."

That brought her back to the problem at hand. "I came with the Happy Trails Caravan. We were on our way to New Canaan. Two of my friends got lost during the attack. I-" she bit her lip, not sure if she should demand help from the Burned Man.

"Happy Trails… They were good friends." He sounded somber as he continued. "I have bad news for your employers…" Layla's stomach clenched, fully expecting a death sentence.

"New Canaan has been destroyed, it's citizens scattered."

The Courier gaped at him as the information hit home. "Destroyed? The whole town?"

"Yes. They were thorough." He gave her a evaluating look. "Only a few dozen of us survived. Two are still here in Zion, myself included. Caesar demanded it of the White Legs, almost assuredly because of me"

"Caesar's dead," the Courier blurted out. She blinked dumbly, looking back at the Burned Man. She sincerely hoped he wasn't about to shoot her. She didn't really think the man was very concerned about Caesar's good health, but she'd seen weirder behavior out of Legionnaires. Graham was silent for a moment.

"After all the things he did to me, tried to do to erase me, it's hard to believe he went before me," he said soberly, then looked at Layla again. "Do you know how it happened?"

"I uh…" She hesitated, then decided to give him the incredibly short version. "There was a raid on Fortification Hill. He was shot."

"Was it NCR?" the Burned Man asked, sounding surprised. Visions of red berets danced in Layla's head as she answered.

"Not in an official capacity," Layla said. He searched her face for a moment. If he had any suspicions as to why she was being purposely cryptic, he didn't bring them up.

"I suppose it's best for the Mojave. I only hope the tribes won't suffer while the Legion falls around them."

"They won't. I'll make sure the Legion has very little to go home with."

"Good." There was a less-than civilized air in his response, but it calmed. "You are doing God's work, even if you don't believe it." He went back to examining the guns on the table as he continued speaking. "Once the trouble here In Zion is over, we can help you get back to the Mojave, but right now, we have our own problems."

"I can help…" Layla said automatically, then tried to ignore the voice in her head screaming about who she'd just offered to help. The Burned Man looked up from his guns, probably not expecting that either.

He looked her over again. "We can help each other, but we have differing priorities… For now, you are injured. One of the shamans can heal you."

"I-" She looked down at her wound; she'd forgotten about it. "It's not as bad as it looks." Her stomach turned as she looked at the stains on her armor. "This isn't my blood… besides, I need to find my friends, the ones who are still alive."

"You should rest." His tone turned kind again. "You can't do anything for them while it's dark."

Frowning again, Layla relented. "I guess not..."

"Come see me in the morning. We can discuss finding your friends. Perhaps you'll be able to help us as well."

Layla nodded. "Okay… Thank you…"

"Call me Joshua."

"… Thank you, Joshua."

"Follows-Chalk can find you a place for the night." There was a trace of amusement in his voice again, then it sobered. "God be with you."

The scout led her outside to one of the tents. Inside was a cot covered in bighorner pelts. "You can sleep here," he said. "I'll wake you up at first light, okay?"

"Yeah. Thank you."

He patted her shoulder and left her alone. She felt like she could pass out immediately, but decided she should tend to the cut on her side. It really wasn't bad, but the blood covering her made it look far worse. As she tended to the wound, she'd found most of the torso of her armor had been destroyed. Grimacing, she realized had it not been there, she probably would have been killed by the yao guai.

For now, the top of her armor was destroyed. She frowned, then carefully cut away the shredded torso of the suit, tucking it into her bag. She'd be able to fix it when they got home… if they got home. Down to her undershirt, she settled onto the cot.

The day came crashing back to her as she lay there, desperately trying not to cry. She eventually fell asleep, Boone and Cass on her mind.

*.*.*

"You are very lucky," Daniel said to Cass as he bandaged her side. "A fall from that height could have easily killed you."

"Yeah, well that would have been less painful," Cass replied stiffly. When she'd woken up at the bottom of the canyon, aching from every part of her body, she had been amazed she was alive. When her eyes had landed on Boone's still form, she'd thought for one dark moment he hadn't been so lucky.

Thankfully, she'd been able to wake him, which was about when she'd realized Layla wasn't around. Dread had filled her when her shouts up the canyon hadn't been answered.

Boone had figured she was trying to get to them, but was just as worried as Cass that she'd run into trouble on the way. They decided to go looking her, but it wasn't easy to tell which direction would lead them back to the ridge.

They hadn't gotten far before running into another human being. The man was covered in tattoos and dressed like a tribal. Boone almost shot him, but the man made no hostile action. He didn't seem to speak English, but explained through a series of gestures that they should follow him; he could heal them or take them to someone who could. Both injured and lost in the maze of canyons, Cass and Boone had reluctantly followed him.

When they'd been brought to a camp past a sign marked 'The Narrows,' the rest of the tribe had been welcoming, but still incomprehensible. Cass had feared they wouldn't be able to get specific help from them until a woman named Waking Cloud had greeted them in English. The tribal had gone on to explain they were fetching a New Canaanite named Daniel, who knew of medicine. Once he'd arrived, the missionary had immediately started tending to their injuries.

For now, Cass knew Boone was itching to leave to find Layla. He kept looking back the way they'd come, probably hoping another scout would arrive with her tagging along.

"What brought you to Zion?" Daniel asked, noticing Boone's wandering eyes.

"We came with Jed Masterson and Happy Trails," Cass answered, feeling her stomach twist. "We were ambushed by a group of tribals. They killed Jed and nearly the whole caravan…"

"We traded with Happy Trails quite a bit before…" Daniel sighed deeply. "I don't know if a stranger's sympathy stands for much with you, but you have mine."

"Thank you…" Cass murmured. "We were going to reconnect the trade in New Canaan…" She trailed off at the stricken face he was making at her.

Daniel stood. His voice suddenly sounded strained. "New Canaan is gone. The White Legs, the tribe that attacked you, destroyed the town and almost everyone in it."

"What?" Cass gaped at him. New Canaan was supposed to be one of the more stable settlements in all the wastes. "What happened?"

"We didn't see them coming. Many of our number were away from town at the time. They must have been waiting for that moment." The missionary faltered for a moment, then continued. "They killed everyone they could get to, armed, unarmed, it didn't matter to them. They-they beat children to death in their beds. Only three dozen New Canaanites are left, and the White Legs still pursue us and all we shelter…"

Cass saw Boone's stiffened posture in the corner of her eye, and could nearly feel the anger radiating off him.

"There was one other member of our caravan that survived the attack," Cass said. "She got separated from us when we fell. We need to find her."

Daniel looked grave as he nodded. The tremor was gone from his voice when he spoke.

"We are in desperate need of help, and honestly, you're the first people who've come to Zion since the attack who weren't White Legs…"

"We can help," Cass said, "as soon as we find Layla…" She wanted to help these people, something she was certain both Layla and Boone would agree with, but she wasn't going to start running errands until she knew her friend was safe.

The New Canaanite nodded. "In the morning-"

"I'm not waiting," Boone interrupted. "Layla's out there, alone." Cass couldn't blame him for that. If the White Legs were wandering around, the Courier wouldn't be safe out there on her own.

"It's getting dark," Daniel said, biting back his irritation. "No one's going to find any clues to her whereabouts in the dark, and you are hurt and need rest." Still noting their displeasure, he sighed.

"In the morning, I'll send you to the Dead Horse camp. With any luck, they've already found her. If not, Joshua will be able to set up a search for her."

"Joshua?" Cass asked. They'd already met a few Dead Horses at the Sorrows' camp. 'Joshua' was not a Dead Horse name.

"He's another New Canaanite. He works with the Dead Horses." There was a noticeable pause, then Daniel continued. "Get some rest. We'll find her in the morning."

Boone was clearly not happy with the situation, but neither he or Cass could deny the missionary's logic. They relented, and Cass hoped their delay wouldn't cost Layla her life.

*.*.*

The next morning, Daniel checked their injuries again. Boone felt his patience start to run thin as he sat on the ground being checked and prodded instead of searching for Layla. The New Canaanite moved to Cass after he was satisfied with the sniper's condition.

"Do you have any tenderness in your side?" he asked her. She snorted.

"More like my whole body," Cass grumbled as Daniel checked her bandages.

"I think you two are going to be fine," he said as he finished. "As long as you give yourself enough time to rest…" Judging by his tone, he didn't think that was likely to happen.

"Waking Cloud will take you to the Dead Horse camp on the Eastern Virgin river." The missionary sounded uncomfortable for a moment, and Boone was starting to wonder what he wasn't telling them. His stomach twisted; maybe they'd already found Layla and didn't want to tell them her condition.

"What was the other New Canaanite's name again?" Cass asked, sounding suspicious.

"Joshua…"

"Joshua…?" the caravaneer prompted, arms crossing over her chest.

Daniel sighed. "I suppose it's better that you know ahead of time. The Dead Horses' acting war chief is Joshua Graham."

Boone stared at him for a moment. He noticed Cass nod grimly.

"He isn't your enemy," Daniel added quickly, sounding exasperated. "Not anymore. He came to us not long after he'd been… cast out of the Legion, seeking penance. We welcomed him back, and he has endeavored to atone for his sins." The man looked troubled. "Though they are great."

"We're not-" Boone started angrily, but Cass interrupted.

"Sounds good. We'll go with Waking Cloud." The sniper gaped at her as she quickly ushered him away from the missionary.

"We need to find Layla, and the Dead Horses may already have her," she said before he could demand to know what she was doing.

"Then let's get out of here and find her." He glanced to where Waking Cloud was waiting. "Without any 'help.'"

"We don't know our way around here. Waking Cloud does. So either we play possum and let her lead us to Layla, or we dick around all day while she's stuck with the Burned Man."

That stopped him, and he sighed. "She's in trouble, isn't she?"

"Are you kidding?" Cass voice was somewhere between amused and angry. "It's Layla. Knowing her, we're going to have to save her from the White Legs, the Burned Man and a pack of aliens at the same time."

Boone grimaced, following Cass as she walked over to their guide. She was right. Layla was undoubtedly in trouble.

*.*.*

Layla giggled as the baby bighorner nuzzled her. She gave it a pat on the head.

"There there, we'll get you back to your mother," she said. It made a contented grunt, and the girl moved away, holding out a banana yucca.

"Come on, right this way." The animal started to follow her.

When she'd woken up that morning, she'd met with Joshua again. He'd offered to send Follows-Chalk to help her look for her friends, and she'd offered to pick up some pre-war equipment he needed.

Not long into their initial search, they'd found a bighorner calf that had been separated from its mother and the rest of its herd. Follows-Chalk had explained the whole herd had been upset for days, the missing baby probably the cause.

Layla hadn't wanted veer off their search for Cass and Boone, but the poor thing had been cowering on a ridge. Layla didn't have it in her to leave the scared animal alone on the cliff. It wasn't far to the herd, at any rate.

Now the calf, whom Layla had started calling Barnabas, followed her, eyes on the banana yucca. She led him to a rock that served as a bridge between two ledges. The animal took one look at the gap and shied away with an irritated grunt.

"It's okay, buddy, come on." The courier tossed the fruit to him, and Barnabas ate it with a happy snort. She pulled another from her pack and waved it.

"More where that came from, but you gotta come here," she said, careful to keep her voice soothing. The bighorner slowly crossed the bridge, then quickened his pace once he reached the other side. Soon, Layla spotted the heard.

She fed the fruit to the baby and gave him a gentle push in the herd's direction. Barnabas made a happy snort and took off running to rejoin the others. Layla smiled as he started nuzzling what was probably his mother.

"You're pretty good with them," Follows-Chalk said as he rejoined her. He'd been keeping a distance so as not to spook the animal. "I was a little worried they'd charge you when you showed up with the little one."

Layla shrugged. "I never used to be able to do that… Usually Bighorners would chase me off if I got too close."

"Some of our people learn from the animals, become their friends."

The Courier smiled. "Yeah, well, let's get back to looking… Knowing Boone and Cass, they're probably sitting around somewhere safe, waiting for me to show up."


	5. There Are Contentions Among You

**6/21/11 - UPDATE: There will be no Wednesday chapter update this week. I've got a big ass mess in my lap for this week, and I don't want the story quality to suffer for it. So, I'll start posting again on Saturday. See you then, and thank you for your patience.**

I Hope you're all enjoying the story! Thanks again to all the people reading, reviewing, favoriting and adding alerts!

* * *

><p>The Mojave was boring as hell when it wanted to be. Boring and annoying. Manny's colorful retelling of the skirmish they'd been in three days ago didn't help.<p>

"You're lucky I was there to handle it…" he finished, sounding pleased with himself.

"Big talk from the asshole who managed to blow our cover," Boone said, not looking up from his scope.

"Fuck you, man. I got us out of that," Manny grumbled.

"We nearly got captured. By three tribals. And they had to share the stick they beat us with."

"Oh shut up. You were such a baby about it."

"And you're an idiot." Boone said with a grin, eyes still on the scope. He hated spotting, but Manny had asked to switch for the day. The handheld spotting telescope he was looking through barely got any use. This assignment had been a dead end so far: 'look for troop movements.' So far, the most movement they'd seen was from a drunk merchant and his sorry excuse for a brahmin. All this added up to put Boone in a bad mood, something he'd decided to take out on Manny.

"You ever gonna tell me why the MPs found you bareass naked in the fountain at the Ultra-Luxe?"

"Fuck you," his partner replied.

"Best leave we've ever had. I got to go enjoy myself while you sat in the embassy jail."

"_Fuck you_."

Boone laughed. "You know, I can always ask Jamerson. He'll tell..." He trailed off as something caught his eye in the scope.

"What?"

"Get on your gun," Boone said, voice going into business mode.

"What is it?" Manny asked as he hunkered down.

"800 yards, northeast. Legionaries." Adjusting his scope further, he sucked in a breath at what walked into his view. "Oh fuck."

"Is that the fucking Legate!" Manny whispered.

"Yeah, hold on." The man was walking with what Boone assumed were a few of the Legion's scouts. No one else, just the small group with the Legate in the center. It wasn't the best angle for a shot, and the distance would make it more difficult.

"Shit shit shit," Manny grumbled as he up his shot. "Give me the distance again."

"800, no, 825 yards," Boone corrected. "Wind's northeast, about 2 miles an hour." He'd suggest they wait for a better shot, or even move, but the Legion scouts had notoriously good eyes for snipers. The shady spot they occupied was under an outcropping of rock, good for cover, not so good to get at their target.

"Wait for... Shit." Boone spotted another group coming. By its size, it was at least half a century. They were heading toward the Legate's group.

"I'm going for it," Manny whispered. "We're only gonna get one shot, and there'll be fifty guys hunting us down."

Boone frowned. "Do it."

His partner made a few more adjustments, checked the wind one last time, then settled on his rifle. Boone watched through his telescope, trying to breath evenly. As soon as Manny took his shot, he'd be in charge of getting them out of this alive. "You good?"

"Yeah."

He put away the telescope and pulled his rifle off his back. Once Manny made his shot, he'd take out the centurion who'd come with the new group. That should cause enough chaos to get them out of there unscathed. He hoped.

"Here goes," Manny whispered. He took a deep breath, then pulled the trigger. As soon as he fired, Boone popped the head off the centurion. Before getting up, he whipped his scope to where the Legate had been. The man was on the ground now. Blood was everywhere. Not daring to look longer, he stood, slung his rifle, and the two quickly gathered their things, stealing away before the panicked Legionaries had a chance to come after them.

*.*.*

"Manny was… hard to live with after that. It got worse when he didn't get to spend the pool money," Boone said.

"There was a pool?" Cass said with a laugh. "You boys sure love to wave your dicks around about these things, huh?"

"The pool for Graham was a little more complicated; if you won, you had to wait to spend the money. There'd been four prior confirmed kills on him, so you had to wait two weeks. Two weeks later was the Dam battle. Manny was pissed when Graham showed his face."

Cass merely shook her head. Further ahead of them, Waking Cloud was speaking with a Dead Horse scout they'd come across, trying to find out if Layla had been seen in the canyon. A moment later, she walked back to them.

"The Dead Horses are aware of what happened to your caravan," she said somberly. "This scout has heard there was a newcomer to their camp, but doesn't know much else. He has been in the canyon most of the night."

Biting back a grimace, Cass nodded. "I guess we'd better keep moving, then." Either news was bad; if Layla was at the Dead Horses' camp, she'd be in Graham's hands. If she hadn't been found, then she was still lost, possibly trapped somewhere, or…

"Yes," Waking Cloud said simply. Cass followed her lead as they continued. Something had been bothering her most of the morning.

"Aren't you all taking a risk trusting us?" the caravaneer asked. "You don't know anything about us…" The woman turned her way, a knowing smile on her face.

"You were in need of aid, and I can see how much you worry for your friend."

"That doesn't mean we're trustworthy…" Cass scoffed.

"Honest hearts produce honest actions," the other woman smiled. "At least, that is what Daniel says. We also knew the Happy Trails caravan. They were friends."

Cass felt her stomach twist again, and changed the subject. "You said you were a mid-wife, but I haven't seen any children around here…"

"The children and the old have been evacuated from the camp. They will be safe, unless the White Legs come in force," Waking Cloud answered.

"How long have you been in Zion?"

"We have dwelt in the Narrows since the End that Came in Fire, and had good relations with the other tribes. Until the White Legs. We have Daniel to thank for our continued existence. He has helped us keep the White Legs at bay."

"What about Graham?" Boone asked stiffly. Cass wanted to smack him one. If Waking Cloud figured out their suspicion of the Burned Man, she might refuse to help them. The woman seemed to take note of his irritation, but answered all the same.

"He is the Dead Horse Chief, and they have helped by scouting the area so that no one is ambushed by the White Legs. Daniel thinks that it is because of the Dead Horse presence that they don't attack outright."

Cass didn't know what to make of that.

*.*.*

"There isn't really a place where people give away all their money to watch someone flip pieces of paper, is there?" Layla burst out laughing at Follows-Chalk's question.

"Well when you put it that way…"

The tribal stared at her, and she continued.

"We call it gambling. Essentially you give up some money hoping you'll win more in return."

"Is it likely you'll win?"

"Not really," the Courier grinned. "Unless you're lucky. It's entertainment, really. Well, unless you've got a problem; some folks go crazy and end up ruining themselves trying to win."

The Dead Horse frowned, and Layla let him think about that while they kept searching the general store for lunchboxes. The Courier wasn't exactly sure what they were for, but they were on the list. Looking around the register, she smiled as she picked up a Zion National Park snow globe. If House was cross with her for sneaking away to Utah, the souvenir would probably go a long way to smoothing that over.

She looked over to her Dead Horse guide and grinned as he turned a Dinky the Dinosaur toy over in his hand. She'd have to let Boone know he couldn't escape his dinosaur friend, no matter where he went.

Follows-Chalk had nearly been giddy to enter the building. It was one of many taboo places for the Sorrows, and that had been enough to keep the Dead Horses out as well. Follows-Chalk was one of the few not scared off by the Sorrow's concerns. Suddenly curious, she turned to him.

"Do you mind if I ask about your tribe?"

"What can I tell you?"

"What's with all the tattoos?"

Follows-Chalk looked down at himself. "Well, they mark achievements; if a hunter takes down an impressive beast, or a youth goes on their first hunt, they get a tattoo."

Layla walked up to him, looking over the numerous markings on the man. "Are you a hunter?"

"Me? No. I am a scout, but not a full one yet. The advanced scouts use chalk to mark the areas rich with game, and I follow them to direct the hunters."

"What's this one?" The Courier poked a spot on his shoulder blade. "It looks like a flower."

"Oh," the tribal laughed. "We found an area with strange creatures. They looked like plants, but attacked like animals. I had to defeat one. It would have been too embarrassing to have been killed by a flower."

Layla laughed. "I know what you mean. I've run into murderous flowers before." A thought suddenly occurred to her; Ricky had said he'd gotten his Vault 22 suit from a prospector from Zion... She noticed Follows-Chalk was looking at her with a mildly concerned look as she stared off into space, thinking. She shook away the thought for now.

"Anyway, will you get a new name when you're a full scout?"

"Perhaps, if I earn it."

"Huh, well, I think this is all the lunchboxes," Layla said. "Let's head back out." Follows-Chalk nodded and they left the building, starting for the Sorrows' camp. "Joshua said you aren't from around here. Where are you from?"

"We were from the area of the Dead Horse," he looked somber for a moment, "We fought and lost our land, and would have been wiped out if it hadn't been for Joshua and his Caesar."

Layla gaped at him. "Caesar?"

"When Joshua first came to us, he lead Caesar's armies. He taught us how to hunt better, how to hold on to our land. He left to fight a battle against a tribe called Enseeyar. When he came back to us, he was burned, and changed. He led us away from Caesar and let us find our own destiny in Zion.

Before, he was a cruel man. I was very young, but I remember being terrified of him. When he came back, I almost didn't believe it was the same man. He was humble, and wanted to protect, not destroy."

The Courier nodded, thinking. Graham obviously had a change of heart after Caesar made an example of him. She couldn't help but think getting set on fire and thrown off a cliff would do that… if you survived. The misgivings she'd been harboring about helping the Burned Man faded. It seemed like he really was trying to help these people. She suddenly smiled.

"Wait, 'En-see-ar?' NCR? That's where I'm from."

"You are one of the Sunset People?" Follows-Chalk seemed surprised.

"Sunset People?" Layla grinned. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Joshua said they were a good enemy, smart and determined."

"Nice to know the Legion thinks so highly of us. When we find Boone, you can meet one of their warriors," she said. The tribal seemed pleased at that.

"Are you a warrior too?" he asked.

"Ha!" Layla laughed. "No. I'm a messenger, healer, occasionally a diplomat. Not a warrior though."

"Were you coming to Zion to deliver something?"

"Not really… unless you count bad luck. I actually haven't done much delivery lately. The diplomat thing is starting to take over…"

She sighed, then smiled. "Once everyone's done fighting over the Dam, maybe I'll go back to delivering… I haven't really thought about it."

"How can two civilized tribes fight over something as small as a dam?"

"Well… Hoover Dam is pretty big, bigger than some of these mountains, in fact. If you have the dam, you have the electricity and the water, which is pretty important. But still… you'd be surprised what 'civilized' tribes will fight over."

"Now you sound like Joshua," Follows-Chalk said. "He tells me I should stay here and forget the outside world."

Layla was about to answer as they turned a corner in the canyon. She and Follows-Chalk both stopped abruptly; only a few feet away stood a green gecko nearly double Layla's size, hissing at them.

*.*.*

"We are not far from the camp," Waking Cloud announced. "I'm sure your friend is there."

Cass appreciated her attempt to put their minds at ease, especially Boone's. He'd grown quiet and tense as they'd walked, probably thinking they were going to find Layla tied to a bomb, the Burned Man holding the detonator. The caravaneer wasn't sure what was going to happen when they reached the camp. She hoped the sniper would play it cool, or they could end up having to shoot their way out.

Turning the next corner, Cass saw a Dead Horse a few feet behind a woman with long dark hair. Both were turned away from them, facing a gigantic green gecko. The tribal looked nervous as he watched the woman slowly reach out to the creature. The gecko, which stood nearly three feet taller than the girl, let her pet its neck, actually leaning into her hand as it made a noise Cass could swear sounded like purring.

It wasn't until the girl spoke that Cass realized who it was.

"Well aren't you the cutest giant murderous gecko? Yes you are!" Layla's armor was cut off at the waist, her top replaced with a blue tribal wrap, but she looked unharmed.

"Layla!" Cass hadn't meant to cry out, not wanting to spook the gecko. The Courier turned, and a look of pure joy came over her features as she saw them. She ran their way as the gecko scampered off. She threw herself at the older woman, who barely kept to her feet on impact.

"You're okay," the Courier said as she hugged Cass. "I knew you'd be okay."

"Yeah, well, mostly…" Cass grunted as Layla squeezed her wounded side. The girl jumped back with a hasty apology. She then turned to Boone and threw her arms around him as well. He wrapped his arms around her and they stayed that way for a moment. Cass nearly got her hopes up, thinking they'd go further, but Layla disengaged from him suddenly, blushing.

"Uh, a-anyway," Layla stammered, running a hand through her hair. "What happened to you guys?"

"We got picked up by a Dead Horse and brought to the Sorrows' camp. Met one of the New Canaanites," Cass said, keeping her tone neutral and watched as Layla started looking over Boone for injuries. She pulled up the back of his shirt and examined his bruises while the sniper patiently stood still. Cass shook her head.

"What happened to you?" she asked the Courier.

"Oh, well, I went running to try to get to you two, nearly got killed by a yao guai. Have you seen them?" Cass shook her head. "They're mutated bears, best I can tell. The one that attacked me was bigger than a grown bighorner. Follows-Chalk here helped me with it. Oh, Follows-Chalk, this is Cass and Boone," she said, introducing her friends.

"Well, I am glad they survived the attack," the young man said earnestly, which made Layla smile.

"Yeah, me too." She turned back to the Cass and Boone, then noticed the woman standing behind them. "Who's your friend?"

"Waking Cloud," Cass said. "She's a Sorrow."

"It is good you are safe," the tribal said. "Your friends were very worried for you."

Layla started blushing again, "Um, well, thank you for keeping an eye on them." She ran a hand through her hair again. "Anyway, Follows-Chalk took me to the Dead Horse camp to regroup..."

The girl had said the last part a little strangely, like she was avoiding something. Cass thought she knew why, but Boone spoke first.

"What did he do to you?" the sniper said suddenly.

"I, uh - who?" the Courier said, trying to sound innocent.

"We know Graham was there," Cass said. "Did you see him? Did he…" She trailed off as she glanced at Follows-Chalk. It occurred to her that the tribal might have been sent with Layla to keep her from running off. If the girl was uncomfortable talking about the situation in front of him, it might be a better idea to keep their mouths shut until they could get her away from him.

Boone once again seemed to be following Cass' line of reasoning, though not her conclusions, as his hand strayed towards his machete. Layla seemed to have noticed and started talking quickly.

"Follows-Chalk and I are looking for some supplies for a New Canaanite named Daniel."

"We've met him. He's the one who patched us up at the Sorrows' camp," Cass answered, suspicion coloring her voice. "What supplies?"

"Oh, just some medical supplies and walkie-talkies. Joshua asked us to drop them off with Daniel…" The Courier bit her lip, looking up at her companions as she seemed to realize what she'd just said.

"Can I have a word with you, alone?" Cass asked, glancing at Follows-Chalk and Waking Cloud.

"Uh, sure, just give us an -AH!" the girl squealed as Cass grabbed her by the ear and dragged her toward the river, Boone following closely behind.

"Ow ow ow ow!" Layla cried, and the older woman let her go. She rubbed her now-red ear and was looking far more apprehensive than before.

"You're helping him," Cass said accusingly.

"I... He..." the Courier stammered, then seemed to find her footing. "You saw the White Legs. They're as bad as raiders, even worse. Joshua brought the Dead Horses to Zion to help the Sorrows hold them back."

"So now you're working with Graham." Boone said, and even Cass was surprised at the anger in his voice. "He butchered and enslaved his way through all of Arizona, and now you're _helping_ him?"

For a moment, Layla looked like she was going to burst into tears, but her expression hardened. "Yes, I'm helping him. The Sorrows are going to get wiped out, and I'm not going to sit around and let it happen.

"You want to know what he's done to me?'" she continued. "Since I got here, all he and the Dead Horses have done is offer to help us, even though they've got their own problems."

"You don't really trust him, do you?" the sniper asked.

"… Yes. I do." She looked like she was going to falter under his glare, but pressed on. "I've talked to him. He doesn't care about the Legion anymore. He just wants to help these people."

"He doesn't get to say 'I'm done' and walk away from what he did," Boone said.

"He didn't walk away. He was lit on fire and thrown off a cliff."

"That doesn't make up for what he did."

"No. But apparently it was a good enough reason to change his mind."

"This is insane," Boone growled.

"Well, I'm staying and helping, and if you don't like it, you're going to have to drag me back to the Mojave."

The Courier took a step back, as if she thought he'd actually grab her.

*.*.*

Further away, Follows-Chalk and Waking Cloud watched the outsiders quarrel.

"Do you think all people in the civilized world act like this?" Follows-Chalk asked.

"I do not know… They were so happy a moment ago."

The Dead Horse was about to comment when Layla turned his way.

"Come on, Follows-Chalk. We've got to get this stuff to Daniel!" she yelled, then stormed off before anyone had a chance to speak.

"Excuse me, I have to go," Follows-Chalk said to Waking Cloud as he started after the Courier. "She's going the wrong way."


	6. Seek Peace, And Pursue It

Sorry for the delay folks, I'm hoping to add an extra chapter this week to catch up for the delay. I'll make an announcement on the next chapter if there'll be an extra posting.

* * *

><p>"The White Legs showed no mercy. They killed the children, the old and the infirm," Daniel explained, sounding sick at the memory. "They burned our bishop, Mordecai, to death in the second floor of his house." He looked particularly pained at that.<p>

"…Were you close to him?" Layla asked, giving Daniel a sympathetic frown. The New Canaanite gave her a guarded look in return.

"It doesn't matter. We need to focus on the current problem."

Layla frowned. She had just brought the missionary the items she and Follows-Chalk had collected in Zion. They'd gotten everything on the list Graham had given her, except a compass. She had decided to check some of the ranger stations in the area once they were done here. Looking back at Daniel, she continued.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to… but suppressing this kind of thing isn't going to do you any good…"

The man sighed heavily. "He was our leader, and now he's gone. I'm doing all I can to keep us together here, but it seems insurmountable."

The Courier nodded grimly. "If we all work together, we'll get through this."

The frown on his face didn't fade, but Daniel looked less glum. "You are kind to help strangers."

Layla couldn't help but smile. "Well, you did it first. Thank you, by the way."

"It's our way to help those who need it. We weren't about to turn your injured friends away."

Something in Layla's stomach twisted at the mention of Cass and Boone. Both were standing further away in the camp, and she could feel eye lasers on her back. Neither of her companions had been pleased to find out she'd offered to help the former Legion Legate, Joshua Graham. Even if he did seem to genuinely want to help the people of Zion.

She couldn't explain to them why she trusted Graham. Anything she could say would sound hollow. If they would just speak to him, or the Dead Horses who followed him, they'd see. Whatever had gone through his mind after he'd lost his Legion life, it had ended in him seeking forgiveness with the New Canaanites. Layla wasn't sure he'd get the chance to relay that to either of her friends

Shaking away the thought, she looked up at Daniel. "So, what's the plan?"

The missionary's face took on a neutral look. "We need to get the Sorrows out of here. The White Legs will continue to seek out the remaining New Canaanites and any they're associated with. The tribe doesn't deserve to get caught up in this…"

The stricken look on his face was back, and he was silent for a moment.

"If you can find a compass, there will be a few more things to gather," he continued. "Then we can evacuate the Sorrows to the Grand Staircase, beyond the canyon. The White Legs won't be equipped to survive there. They won't follow us."

"What will happen to Zion?" Layla asked. The canyon seemed like a pre-war oasis, and she was disheartened to think of the Sorrows losing it.

"The White Legs will probably take over." Daniel's expression mirrored Layla's displeasure. "But there's no alternative."

"Can't we fight the White Legs?"

"The Sorrows haven't had to worry about war for decades… They're innocent, if there is such a thing. They are unequipped to fight, physically and mentally."

The frown was back on Layla's face, but she didn't respond. The missionary continued.

"For now, if you can concentrate on finding that compass, I can continue preparing the Sorrows."

Layla nodded. "I'll be back."

"If you need help in the canyon, Waking Cloud can assist you," the missionary said.

"Okay, thank you."

Stepping away, the Courier felt her stomach twist again. Looking around for Follows-Chalk or Waking Cloud, she found neither tribal in the area. Which meant no buffer zone between her and her friends.

She wanted to go to them and explain again why this was the right thing to do, but a sudden burst of irritation caught her. Not wanting to go their way and start yelling, she instead began looking for Follows-Chalk. She needed to get that compass, and he knew the area.

Continuing along the rock walls, she stopped suddenly as she saw Joshua coming her way from the camp entrance. Layla had thought she'd have trouble reading him, as his face was almost completely covered in bandages, but she could definitely tell he was not happy. Before she got a chance to greet him or ask him what was wrong, he spoke.

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem who said, 'Raze it, raze it, even to the foundation.' O Daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed. Happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us. Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth the little ones against the stones." Graham looked at her, eyes piercing. "Do you know what it means?"

Layla nodded, suddenly grateful for the basic understanding of biblical texts her mother had given her. "You want to fight the White Legs, not let them have Zion." He made a pleased grunt at that.

"If we dwelled in a perfect world, they'd simply leave us alone. But they won't. The Dead Horses and I are prepared to do what is necessary. Even some of the Sorrows are, though Daniel may not want to admit it. They are not warriors, but this is their home.

Daniel doesn't understand how a tribe like this works. He thinks the White Legs will give up their pursuit if we flee. They will not."

Layla bit her lip, thinking. "This is what you came to Zion to do."

"Zion is a temple to God, and the White Legs affront is an affront to God. It demands correction." Layla wasn't sure if he'd picked up on her sudden discomfort, but he continued. "I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's just a chore, like any other. Practiced hands make for short work. And the good Lord knows there's much to be done here."

Layla found that to be a little more disturbing than she expected. She was about to respond when she saw Graham look up and draw his gun. Turning, Layla found Boone standing behind her with his rifle trained on the Burned Man.

"Boone! Stop!" she cried.

"I told you before; I see red, I shoot," the sniper growled, not lowering his gun. Layla's shock finally receded, and she stepped in front of Graham, blocking Boone's shot.

"And I told you I was helping Graham." The sniper didn't move, something Layla hadn't expected. The glare she'd been giving him faltered. "Boone… please."

He grimaced, but lowered his rifle and stalked away without a word. The Courier watched him go, letting out the breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"Your friends are aware of my history," Graham said somberly. "That was a 1st Recon beret, wasn't it?"

Layla nodded, eyes still on Boone's retreating back. "Thanks for not shooting him."

She'd meant it for both men.

*.*.*

Cass watched Boone stalk off away from Layla. He was supposed to let her know their concerns and make nice. Judging by the infuriated look he was sporting, it hadn't gone well. The caravaneer frowned; Layla wasn't exactly a dirty fighter when it came to arguing, so why was Boone so angry?

Her answer came in the form of Layla walking toward the camp with what looked like a mummy wearing a SWAT vest. The sight was bizarre enough that it took her a moment to realize who she was looking at. He didn't seem to notice her as he walked by, which probably was for the best. She wasn't going to talk to the psycho. After he walked past her to speak with Daniel, Cass finally noticed Layla had lingered nearby.

"Um," she started. Cass had never seen her look so apprehensive. "So, I uh…" She stopped, chewing her lip. Any anger Cass had been harboring about the situation was fading at the sight of the girl's obvious anxiety.

"I need to go find a compass. Will you go with me?" she said finally, and Cass frowned. The Courier wasn't nearly as tough as she liked to act around people. Well, that depended, really; she could be tough as nails if someone she cared about was in trouble. Hell, even if it was a stranger she usually found a reserve of strength most didn't expect out of her. Veronica liked to call Boone a 'Crazed Mother Bear,' but Cass always thought the term was better suited to Layla. Raul had told her the story of how Layla had ripped apart a dozen Legionaries single-handedly with a chainsaw that was almost as heavy as she was. All to get to Boone. After that, the caravaneer had concluded she'd earned the title.

But looking at her now, she seemed like she would burst into tears at any moment. Fighting with she and Boone must be upsetting Layla a great deal. Cass had already decided she wanted to help the Sorrows, which was essentially what Layla wanted, despite the other allies that gained them.

"Yeah, I'll go."

A tentative smile cleared the anxiousness from Layla's face, and she started fiddling with her Pip-Boy. "Follows-Chalk pointed out some ranger stations around the canyon. I think that's our best bet. Did you see him around? Or maybe Waking Cloud? If we come across any scouts, I want to be able to talk with them…"

"Did you need my assistance?" Waking Cloud asked as she walked up to the other two women. "Daniel said I was to help you if you needed me." Layla had jumped when she'd spoken, clearly not expecting her to appear immediately.

"Oh good. We're going to look around the canyon for a compass. We'd love your help," the Courier said.

"I am happy to do so," the tribal said with a smile, and they started for the Narrows' exit. Not far into the canyon, the tribal spoke up again. "What is a compass, exactly?"

"Oh, well, it's a device that uses a magnetized pointer that aligns with the poles of the earth to determine magnetic north," Layla explained.

"I don't think she speaks Nerd," Cass muttered, getting a glare from the Courier. The younger girl cleared her throat.

"It uses magnets to point North. That way you always know what direction you're traveling."

Waking Cloud seemed amused at the exchange. "Thank you, I can see that would be very useful in the evacuation."

"Yeah…" The Courier suddenly sounded troubled. "How do you feel about leaving Zion?"

"I am not happy to leave my home, but Daniel has assured us it is the only way if we are to survive."

Cass noted Layla's uneasy look. She grew silent as they continued their search.

*.*.*

"…The Father in the Caves gave us his earthly wife and child, but we sinned against him, so he punished us with The End That Came in Fire. We forgot the holy tongue that all the holy scripture is written in. But Daniel has taught it to us again."

Cass frowned at Waking Cloud's explanation of her religion. "I don't think that's the same god the New Canaanites follow…"

The tribal gave her a patient smile. "Perhaps you are not as familiar with their god. Speak to Daniel next time you get the chance; he will be happy to talk to you about it."

"Yeah, I bet," the woman grumbled, and Layla gave her a warning look. She didn't want to have to lecture the woman on cultural sensitivity, mainly because she was sure Cass would laugh her ass off if she tried. She wasn't too worried though; Cass knew how to keep from pissing people off when it was necessary. Well, most of the time. For now, she concentrated on the road ahead of her.

"We can't be far from that one station, just past this road…" She trailed off as she looked down a cliff the road veered from. The remains of a pre-war school bus was split in two on the bottom of the ravine. Child-sized skeletons littered the ground.

It'd felt like someone had punched her in the stomach as she looked at the wreckage, and she lowered herself down the slope to the crash. Careful not to disturb the bones, she walked to the bus and looked in. There were even more little bodies. Two adult-sized ones too.

Something caught her eye in the scattered debris, and she frowned as she realized what it was, a compass. Looking over the skeletons, she wondered why a pack of kids needed such a thing. There were toys, cherry bombs, a couple lunchboxes, normal kid stuff. Bending near one of the bodies, she found a patch on the ratty remains of their collar. 'Li'l Scouts,' it said. That logo was on a few of the lunch boxes as well.

"Some kind of club," she said out loud, the looked up to Cass and Waking Cloud. Both women were giving her somber looks. "There's a compass here…"

Picking it up, she saw it was missing its sensor module. Frowning, she looked around, then spotted it clutched in a tiny skeletal hand.

Layla didn't like to disturb the dead, an old tribal habit she'd picked up from her father. She never had much trouble scavenging from buildings, but when it came to pulling clothes off bodies and ripping things out of brittle, ancient hands, she refused.

"_The dead don't need it," _she could hear her mother admonish her father for the eightieth time. _"If I were dead and someone needed something I had, I'd want them to have it." _

"_Can I have your Pancor Jackhammer?" _her eldest brother would ask.

"_I'm not dead yet, you little monster!"_

Nearby, she saw another hand clutching a Dinky toy. She bit her lip at the sight of it, briefly wondering if the kid had ever been to Novac, or whatever it used to be. There was another one of the toys discarded in the shallow water nearby. She scooped it up.

Neither of her companions spoke as she gently pried to module free of its owner's hand, replacing it with the toy dinosaur.

*.*.*

"So, Waking Cloud…" Cass started. The caravaneer noticed Layla giving her a warning look, which she ignored. "How's life in Zion?"

"It is good; game is plentiful, the weather is kind, and before the White Legs, those who were in the canyon were good friends. I will miss this place when we have left."

Cass noticed Layla frown deeply at that. The older woman went back to addressing the Sorrow.

"Got any family?"

"I have a wonderful husband and three children." Waking Cloud sounded delighted to speak of her family. Cass couldn't help but grin.

"Was your husband at the camp?" she asked.

"No, he volunteered to watch after the children and elderly that were evacuated. I haven't heard from him in a few weeks. I miss him."

"Well, we'll be dealing with the White Leg situation soon," Layla said thoughtfully. "Have you heard from them recently?"

"I have asked Daniel about my family. He had spoken with a few scouts about their whereabouts. Every time I bring it up, he seems… sad. Sometimes I think he's trying to protect me."

Cass saw Layla glance her way, a troubled look on her face. The caravaneer was about to speak again when Waking Cloud continued.

"What about you? Do you have families?"

"Pfft, no," Cass said automatically. "I'm not much for settling down."

"And you?" the tribal addressed Layla. "Are you with the warrior who came to Zion with you?"

"Shit, aren't you perceptive?" Cass said, laughing. "They're even fighting now. You should see them when they're all buddy-buddy."

"I am the Sorrows midwife. You don't spend so much time with young couples without getting to know these things," the tribal said sagely.

Cass grinned and looked back, expecting the Courier to be the shade of red she usually turned when this subject came up. She was surprised to find her frowning sadly.

"We're not together," she said, then adopted a closed, stony face Cass had never seen on her. She knew what it was though, she'd put a clamp on her emotions. Waking Cloud seemed to have gotten the hint as well and turned away, giving Cass a knowing look.

The caravaneer frowned; she was going to have a talk with Boone when they got back to camp. She wouldn't go as far to say he was being unreasonable, but this couldn't last. Layla being so glum was damn depressing.

"Well, when we get back to the camp, I can talk to Daniel about your family-" Cass was cut off by a loud roar. She saw Layla spin automatically, hands going for her shotgun.

Cass turned as well and found a monstrously huge creature bearing down on them. She had to agree with Layla; it did look like a mutated bear. Despite her quick initial reaction, Cass found Layla just staring at the monster.

"Move, you dummy!" Cass cried, and all three women started running. The caravaneer turned back, shooting as they ran.

"The cave!" Layla cried. Looking ahead, Cass saw there was indeed a cave further ahead of the ravine.

"It is forbidden!" Waking Cloud gasped.

"It's either that or… Holy shit!" Cass nearly got caught by a claw, and Layla blasted the creature in the face with a shotgun round. It bellowed in pain, rearing up. Waking Cloud gave no further argument as they ran for the cave.

All three women stumbled into the cave a moment later, and Layla stood a the entrance, probably hoping to use the small opening to bottleneck the yao guai. After a few tense moments of silence, nothing happened.

"…Well what the fuck? What happened to it?" Cass yelled, still catching her breath.

"Maybe I killed it?" Layla said, cautiously looking out of the hole. There was nothing in the ravine.

"Get back in here!" Cass cried, and the Courier scurried back. "It's probably waiting for us to leave. We'll give it a little while to get bored. Then we're going out dynamite first…"

Layla nodded, then noticed Waking Cloud. She looked anxiously around the cavern. She seemed to gather herself, then addressed the others.

"It will be all right, but we should not linger here longer than we need to."

*.*.*

Layla certainly hoped they weren't going to be trapped in the cave much longer. She was bored. Not wanting to upset Waking Cloud, she had kept from searching the rest of the cave. But as time went on, and they still heard the roaring of the yao guai outside, she'd gotten curious of the cavern. Cass had already started poking around.

"Hey, look at this," Cass said, pointing out a computer on a table. Moving over to it, Layla tapped a few keys, trying to see what its purpose was.

"Looks like someone was using it for diary entries. Randal Clark…" She made a sickly face. "And it looks like it was right after the bombs dropped."

That seemed to get Cass' attention, and both women huddled by the computer screen. Layla noticed Waking Cloud looking at them anxiously, and decided to make this quick.

_"…June 15th_

_Departed April 10th. Walk to SLC took 15 days. Would've been 7-9 back in the old days but had to circle pockets of radiation and foraged along way._

_Don't know what I was thinking. Imagined I'd find my house, dig through rubble, find - something. Your bones I hoped, and Little Nut's. Would've buried them. Here in Zion maybe._

_SLC is mostly craters. Warped steel girders where highrises sat. Mounds of bricks._

_Never found our house. Didn't even find street. What wasn't a crater was scorched clean._

_Want to believe it was fast, a flash, both of you vaporized. Lies to make me feel better. I'll never know. Which part of city got hit first? Northeast and you both died in a blink. Farther away and you burned alive screaming or the blast broken glass and bits of brick and wood splinters shredding you like hamburger. Look at it coward and listen don't turn away face it. If you'd been brave lucky man you would've found a spot and blown your brains out…"_

"So what, he hid here after the war?" Cass asked

"Must have," Layla said.

"Poor bastard," Cass murmured over her shoulder. "Alone after all that…"

Layla felt her heart clench at the thought, then scrolled further along the logs. He apparently had found more survivors whom he helped in secret when they'd been injured. She understood why he worried about revealing himself, but his isolation had to have hurt him.

While she thought about the plight of Randal Clark, she suddenly noticed the roaring had stopped. Downloading the logs to her Pip-boy, she switched off the terminal, then turned to Waking Cloud.

"Okay, let's get out of here."

The tribal looked relieved.

*.*.*

"Do your injuries hurt badly? Is there anything I can do?" Layla said as she looked at the bandages covering Graham. She, Cass and Waking Cloud had made it back to the camp with no further giant bear issues. Daniel had been grateful for the compass, and was now conferring with the scouts about their next move.

Since then, Layla had been pacing around the camp, trying to work up the courage to talk to Boone. Eventually, she'd wandered into the area behind the main Sorrows camp. Waterfalls fed a river which had to be navigated to get to the higher cliffs, where more Sorrows were set up. In one of these side camps, she'd found Graham reading. She'd sat on a rock nearby, happy for a distraction from her sniper problems. Her question caused him to look up at her.

"Everyday I have to rewrap the bandages, and it feels like I'm burning all over again," he answered. She bit her lip, and he inclined his head.

"Thank you for asking, but we don't use chems. And I found out long ago that they don't affect me."

Frowning further, Layla found herself wishing for Arcade again. He might have known something they could do for Graham. Although he probably wouldn't want to help the former Legionary either. She suddenly remembered one of the books the doctor had snuck her on the way out of the 38. A field medical guide.

"I have a medical book. Maybe I can find something we can do that doesn't include chems…"

"The people of New Canaan have tried a few things already." There was some amusement in his voice. "But thank you."

"Joshua, Stone-Thrower's weapon has jammed again," a young Dead Horse said as she came upon them. The Burned Man stood.

"No rest for the wicked," he said with a touch of humor in his voice as he move further up the path to the tribal in question.

Layla watched him go, then dug around her pack and found her medical book. She sat on her rock again and starting flipping through it, looking for any information on burns. Not that she expected there to be a section entitled 'In Case of Complete Immolation' with a subsection, 'And Living,' but there could be something helpful.

"He deserves it."

Startled, Layla turned to find Boone had been standing behind her. He must have heard what she and Graham had been talking about. The sniper looked agitated, but not as angry as before.

"Boone…I-"

He spoke before she could finish.

"I know you think this is the right thing to do, but after what he's done, he deserves the pain."

Layla watched as he turned and left without another word. Looking in the spot he'd occupied a few moments ago, she sighed heavily.

"He's right."

She jumped, startled again, and turned to find that Graham had rejoined her.

"I once lead an attack on a small tribe in Arizona," he continued. "They were called the Sun Dogs. They were peaceful, with no hope of repelling us. Once they finally surrendered, I had the leaders lined up in front of the rest. Their shaman was the only one who fought back, even after the surrender. He was your friend's age…"

Graham paused, then continued, sounding somber. "I had him staked to a giant ant mound to be slowly eaten alive. Any who tried to help him were shot down. The first had been his eight-year-old son…"

Layla's stomach twisted. His tone was somewhere between rage and regret as he continued. "I deserve these burns and this pain for what I did to the Sun Dogs alone, and there were many others…"

He walked toward the main camp after that. Layla watched him go, more troubled than she'd been before.


	7. Forgive Us Our Sins

"Can I have a word with you?" Cass said as she finally found Boone near the waterfalls in the Narrows. The sniper turned her way and gave her a glare. It didn't do him any good.

"You need to talk to Layla, preferably without blowing up at her." He didn't seem to like that, and glowered further. Cass returned the glare.

"What do you want to do? Up and leave?" Cass said, crossing her arms over her chest. "If that's the case, we either drag Layla back to the Mojave against her will or leave her here. Neither of those are gonna happen, so you'd better get it in your head that we're staying. That includes helping these people, which means helping Graham."

"I didn't know you were part of his fan club too," the sniper muttered.

"For fuck's sake, you think I'm happy about this?" the woman said, but continued thoughtfully. "Since we've been here, he's only worked to help the Sorrows."

The man was still frowning. Cass sighed.

"What was Layla supposed to do? She sees most of the caravan get killed, then we fall off a bridge and she doesn't know if we're dead. Once she met Graham, all he did was offer to help her find us and put her up for the night. What was she gonna do? Shoot him in the face?"

Boone's frowned deepened, and he sighed heavily. "I know. It's just… I've seen first hand what he's done, and now we're helping him. It doesn't seem right."

"Yeah, I know," Cass couldn't help but agree. "If it turns out we're all wrong and he's planning on pulling something, you're gonna have to do a better job than your partner did."

"I will."

"Good, now go find Layla. She probably thinks we're about to abandon her."

*.*.*

"Now add leaves to hot water."

Layla did as she was told, trying to mimic what she'd been shown.

"Good. You pick it up well."

"Thank you," she said.

"Why you hide from friends?"

"What?" Layla hadn't expected White Bird, the Sorrows' shaman, to guess the exact reason she'd come to his cave. She'd hoped the guise of wanting to learn some recipes would mask her reasons, but clearly it hadn't. The man was waiting patiently for her to speak.

"We've... We're disagreeing on something," she said finally. White Bird said nothing, but was still clearly waiting for her to elaborate. "We want to help you and the Dead Horses, but..."

"Joshua Graham was enemy to outside world."

"Yeah… That's it." Layla was relieved he knew what was going on, if not a little surprised.

"Your friends object, but they stay. Stay for you." White Bird said sagely as he added the roasted honey mesquite pods to the pot.

"Yeah, they worry about me."

"They loyal," the shaman said.

"I know. I think they're pretty mad at me, though."

"I would be if friend helping enemy."

Layla laughed. "Yeah, I guess I would be too." She gave the shaman an sideways look. "How is it you know so much about this, and us?"

"You wear heart out for all to see. Not hard to read." That made the girl start blushing instantly. "It good thing," he added.

"If you say so." She frowned, staring at the fire. She was definitely hiding from Boone and Cass. Well, mainly Boone. Cass she'd butt heads with plenty of times; it wasn't a big deal, and she was pretty sure the woman agreed with her by this point. But Boone's previously unlimited patience with her seemed to have run out. She wasn't going to back down from this, and he was clearly furious about it. Layla understood why; she'd probably be angry at him if their positions were reversed, but Graham was honest about his intentions, and she couldn't let the Sorrows down. It didn't keep her heart from sinking at the thought of Boone angry with her, though.

"It is done," White Bird said. He poured some of the liquid from the pot into two bowls. Layla accepted one with a nod and took a drink.

"Oh, this is so much better than chicory," she sighed. The black 'coffee' the tribals had made from tobacco leaves and honey mesquite had a deep, smoky flavor, and she could just make out the taste of the tobacco. Arcade was going to love this; he and Boone were her coffee junkies. She knew the sniper would enjoy it too, and the thought made her frown. She was going to have to figure out a way to get back in his good books. She couldn't stand the idea of him being mad at her.

"Thank you, White Bird," the Courier said with a smile. "This is amazing."

"Do you want to learn truth?" he asked. "Spirit Journey. Sacred Datura flower, drink tea, see truth."

"Spirit journey?" Layla had spoken to a few Sorrows about the rituals surrounding their yao guai gauntlets. One was supposed to aid the tribe by defeating a yao guai that threatened the Sorrows, and they'd get a gauntlet made from the creature's forearm and paw. It was supposed to be a rite of passage. She dug around her pack; she'd already picked up a few of the flowers as she'd traveled the canyon.

"…Yeah, lets-"

"Layla?"

She turned to find Boone in the entrance of the cave.

"Hey," she answered, then bit her lip. The Courier really hoped he hadn't come to try to 'discuss' working with Graham. She would end up yelling again, and she really didn't want to in front of White Bird.

"I…" he started, sounding uncomfortable. "I'm not going to…" Whatever it was he was trying to say, he was having a hard time with it. He frowned, then seemed to notice the flowers in Layla's hands.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I was about to go on a spirit journey," she answered.

"Oh." He looked at the datura flowers with a wary expression. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"I... Yeah, that'd be great." She looked at White Bird, and he gave an approving nod. "Yeah, let's do it then."

*.*.*

A short time later, the Sorrow's shaman handed Layla a bowl. Boone stood nearby, not sure how he felt about this idea. Normally he'd just tell the girl his misgivings, but it felt like there was a wall between them since their argument. The sniper wasn't happy about it; he'd wanted to clear the air between them, but instead she was going on a 'spirit journey.' The shaman spoke to Layla.

"Drink tea, see path before you. Ready?" The Courier bit her lip, but nodded.

"Drink, tea is strong. Tea is bitter. Wisdom is strong. Wisdom is bitter, you see." Boone saw her glance his way, then take a drink from the bowl. Her eyes closed. A moment later, they opened, but were slightly glazed over. The shaman looked satisfied with her condition.

"Put Ghost of She to rest," he said to her. "Bring peace where there was strife."

The Courier nodded once and stood. Boone followed after her as she wandered out of the cave. She walked purposefully out of the camp through the river.

"Do you know where we're going?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes," the girl answered simply. She wasn't checking her Pip-Boy as she started leading them through the twisting paths of the canyon. Boone didn't know what to make of that; Layla had a terrible sense of direction. He was about to question her when she suddenly stopped.

"We have little time for distractions." She pulled her gun from its holster. Boone stared at the weapon; he'd never seen her use it before. It took him another moment to realize it was that gun Cliff Briscoe had been trying to sell at the Dino-Bite. He hadn't known Layla had bought it off him.

He was going to ask about it when the girl aimed at the canyon wall to their right and fired, seemingly at random. There was a cry after the shot rang out, and a White Leg crashed down the rock wall into the river a moment later, dead. She holstered the gun and kept moving as Boone stared at the corpse, amazed. That would have been a tricky shot with his rifle, never mind a pistol.

The rock wall of the canyon split into a valley, which Layla followed. Not far into it, they found what looked like a very old camp littered with skeletons. Most of the skulls were shattered; it looked like they'd had been shot from a distance. Boone couldn't really tell how old the bones were, but he had to guess they weren't pre-war. This place had been a park.

"They were Vault Dwellers," Layla said, looking intently at one of the bodies. "The plant was eating them."

Boone's prior worry about the Courier continued to grow as she shuddered suddenly. She took a step back and stumbled. Moving to her, Boone caught her just as she started to fall.

"Did you hear something?" she murmured as Boone saw movement in the corner of his eye. Looking over his shoulder, he grimaced. There was something green and humanoid charging their way. He didn't have time to let go of Layla and grab his machete, so instead he reached over and pulled that gun from Layla's holster. He quickly shot down the creature before it reached them. Once it was dead, he handed Layla back her gun as he let her go.

Moving to the corpse of the creature he'd just shot, he grimaced when he recognized what it was: a spore carrier.

_The plant was eating them. _Boone suddenly remembered what Ricky had said about his vault suit. Zion scavengers. Vault 22 must have had some refugees who brought their plague with them.

Just as he thought about it, another spore carrier appeared and charged at them. Freeing his machete, Boone set his feet and waited for it to reach him. The creature leapt at him, and he dodged, swinging down on its back as it flew by. It let out a screech and scuttled away, just something splashed to the ground near his feet. Looking up, he noticed a spore plant on a higher ridge, spitting venom at him.

The sniper dove out of the way of another blast of venom as a second carrier leapt at him. Scrambling back to his feet, he scored a underhand slice on the creature, which flopped to the ground with a wet thud. Backing up rapidly, he quickly pulled his rifle from his back and put two rounds in the other carrier's torso, dropping it.

The spitting flower shot another load of venom at him, and he stepped to the side, shooting the plant's stalk in half. Catching his breath, he looked around. No spore carriers or flowers moved; most were in pieces.

It was about then that he noticed Layla wasn't in the valley with him.

"Layla?" he called. Not hearing her respond, he searched the ground for her tracks. The sneaking armor she'd been wearing had a distinctive footprint, and he found her trail easily and followed it up another valley.

A few moments later, he nearly slammed into the girl as she calmly walked back to rejoin him.

"Layla?" he said, confused and concerned. "What happened?"

She looked up at him with a hazy expression.

"I found the Ghost of She. The spirit was a great bear. It was alight in flame and took three forms."

"Uh…huh." He finally noticed there was a gigantic yao guai arm in her hands. He gaped at it; the size that bear must have been to have an arm that large...

"We can go back now," the Courier said simply. "Thank you for your assistance."

"Okay…"

They started back the way they'd come, and Boone noticed Layla was getting less steady on her feet as they continued.

"Are you okay?" he asked, moving closer as she took a wobbly step.

"I'm good." She was starting to sound more like herself, but at the same time less coherent.

"When you fell off that bridge, I was scared you hadn't survived," she said suddenly, still sounding hazy, but serious. "Losing Cass would have been terrible… but I don't know if I could have gone on if you'd died."

Boone hadn't been expecting that, and felt a burst of giddy warmth he hadn't been prepared for. It faded a moment later into the guilt he'd been wrestling lately. Trying to clamp down on it, he found her looking at him.

"I'm glad you're okay too…" he answered.

She nodded, and they made their way back to the Narrows. Soon they were back in the shaman's cave, and Layla was having a lot of trouble keeping on her feet.

"Does Ghost of She lie quiet in the grave?" the tattooed man asked as they approached.

"It is done," Layla said as she handed him the severed arm. The shaman took it reverently.

"Will you learn from the truth? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Only for you to decide."

Layla nodded gravely at him, and the motion nearly toppled her over. The shaman looked at Boone.

"She needs to lie down."

"Yeah," Boone said, managing to keep the sarcasm out of his voice as he got her to one of the bighorner pelt sleeping mats.

*.*.*

Cass found Layla lounging on a rock, legs kicked up. She looked far more relaxed than usual. If the caravaneer didn't know better, she'd say the girl was on something. She was absent-mindedly running her hand through her hair.

"Are you going tribal on me?" the older woman asked. "You never keep your hair down this much."

"Huh?" the Courier pulled the hand out of her loose hair, then shrugged. "I dunno, sometimes it gets annoying to keep it up all the time." She grinned. "And what do you mean, 'going tribal?' None of them have hair."

"You know what I mean."

"Uh huh." The girl stretched lazily. "Then this might not be the best time to tell you the Dead Horses have offered to give me a tattoo."

"Of what?" Cass asked. "You haven't killed anything since we came here."

"Oh, apparently I've been named a 'Tierfreund' because I can 'talk' to bighorners and geckos. You get a tattoo for that."

"Are you going to?"

"Maybe when this is all over," she said, looking down at her torso, which was still in a blue Sorrows wrap. "Depends on where it goes and how big it is."

She sat up and looked at something behind Cass. Turning, the woman saw Follows-Chalk approaching.

"Ah, there you are," Layla said, standing. "Wanna help me find some broc flowers?"

"Sure thing," the tribal answered. Cass gave her a questioning look.

"The camp's low on healing powders," Layla answered. "If we can get some more components, I can make a bunch."

"Don't get eaten by a bear," the caravaneer said as they headed off.

"No promises," the girl called back as she left the camp. Cass glanced around, eyes landing on Daniel as he was speaking with a group of Sorrows sorting through their food supplies. She frowned, suddenly remembering the bone she had to pick with him. The missionary looked wary as she approached.

"What can I do for you?" he said.

"What are you hiding about Waking Cloud's family?"

He clearly hadn't been expecting that. The man blanched, and Cass could almost see him trying to think his way out of answering.

"I'm… not sure what I could tell you that she couldn't…"

"Stuff it, you're a terrible liar."

He sighed heavily. "Waking Cloud's husband died a few weeks ago defending their children from a White Legs attack. The children are safe and have already met up with the other New Canaanites further East."

Cass had had a hunch something had happened to the woman's family. She leveled a glare at Daniel.

"Were you planning on telling her? Or did that not seem important?"

The missionary's frown turned defensive.

"For everything there is a season. Who are I or you to put this heavy burden on her?"

"Oh you can blow your excuses; you did it for your sake, not hers," she said, disgusted. "I thought you were supposed to be leading these people."

"I know I shouldn't have hidden this from her, but she is one of the few Sorrows who can speak English and the Dead Horse language. We need her head to be clear now or we could all die," he answered. Cass glowered at him.

"You're so full of shit. That's her husband you've neglected to tell her about."

Daniel sighed heavily. "Tell her if you think it's the right thing to do. I wont stop you…"

"You're fucking right you won't," the caravaneer said, leaving without another word. She stormed in the direction she'd last seen the woman, eventually spotting her near one of the sleeping areas. Cass found her pace slowing as she neared the tribal. She'd never had to give news like this before, and for once found herself unsure of how to proceed.

For a moment, she thought about waiting until Layla got back. This was her department. But Cass didn't want to be a hypocrite.

"Waking Cloud?"

"Katu Veo," she greeted Cass with a smile. It faded as she noticed the serious look the other woman was sporting.

"Can we talk, somewhere private?"

The Sorrow's frown grew, but she motioned her toward the far end of the valley, away from the camp. Once they were alone, the tribal stared at her, looking apprehensive.

Cass took off her hat without thinking, and going by the face Waking Cloud made, she knew what she was about to be told.

"Your husband is dead."

The woman's face registered first shock, then disbelief. "Daniel should have told me…"

Cass grimaced. "He thought your grief would distract you."

"I... thought he was my friend." Waking Cloud starting to sound furious. "He cares nothing for the Sorrows!"

"He was doing what he thought was best," she said. "He wasn't happy about it." Cass wondered for a moment why she was defending Daniel, but he really did care. He had just been an obstinate jack-off about it.

"He and I are going to have a very long talk when this is over… Thank you for telling me this truth."

Cass nodded. "I'm sorry." The tribal's angry expression faded, replaced with pain.

"Thank you… I… I need to be alone."

The woman took off for one of the nearby caves. Cass watched her go, wishing she could feel better for her good deed.

*.*.*

Boone had left Layla sitting on a rock when she'd woken from the end results of her spirit journey. By the time he'd gone back to check on her, she was gone, and a Sorrow had informed him she'd gone off with her Dead Horse friend to look for medicinal herbs. Arcade had once suggested they put a bell on the girl, and Boone was starting to agree.

As he walked by the river running through the camp the Courier had emerged from one of the side areas and spotted him. She looked anxious to approach, so he moved to her.

"Hey," he said, trying to get his thoughts in order again while the same jumbled mess bounced around his skull instead.

"Hey," Layla answered. "Did… did I say anything stupid while I was out of it?" She bit her lip as she waited for him to answer.

"No." He'd wondered what she would remember from her 'journey.' The girl looked relieved from his answer, and suddenly he could think clearly.

"Cass and I are going to see this through with you," he said to her. "Even if we're not happy about it, we're not going to leave you here."

Layla frowned for a moment, then nodded.

"They're planning to evacuate the Sorrows to a place called the Grand Staircase. Daniel wants us to try to find a map of it, probably in one of the visitor shacks or gifts shops. Do you want to go with?"

He simply nodded.

"Good… Let's see if Follows-Chalk wants to come along."

*.*.*

"They call this the Morning Glory cave," Follows-Chalk said. "It's supposed to be haunted."

"Seems like most of the canyon is haunted," Layla said lightly. The tribal laughed.

"The Sorrows say people never come back from the caves, but no one goes in…"

If she had to guess, she'd expect to find another one of Randall Clark's terminals here. It seemed like she always found them in the caves the Sorrows worried about the most. She was starting to see the correlation; the man had booby trapped all the caves he lived in.

"Keep an eye out for traps," she said to Boone. He nodded and automatically moved ahead of Layla and Follows-Chalk.

"Are all the Sunset People's warriors also scouts?" he asked. Layla smirked at Boone.

"Apparently we're the Sunset People," she said to the sniper. "And no, Boone was part of a special group of soldiers," she answered Follows-Chalk.

"Oh. That must be some group."

"They are a fun bunch," Layla said with a smile. Boone kept his eyes on the path before them. The tribal had been very curious about the sniper since they'd started traveling together, and if Layla didn't know better, it was embarrassing him.

The cavern was wide and lit by a fissure in the wall. As Boone and Follows-Chalk looked ahead for more traps, Layla noticed a ridge further up.

"Hey, there's something up there…" Layla called to them as she moved to the ledge leading up to what looked like a door. Stepping up the first ridge, she put her hands on the next to pull herself up. She felt branches under her hands, then felt something snap like a wire.

"Uh-"

She was cut off by what sounded like two cannons going off next to her ears. Opening her eyes, which she'd squeezed shut, she found she was still in one piece. Looking up, she spotted two rigged shotguns pointed at the space directly above her. If she'd been a foot or so taller, she'd be missing her head.

"Layla?" Boone said from behind her.

"Uh, tripwire," she smiled sheepishly. Boone sighed and stepped up to the ledge, examining the trap. He shook his head when he noted the guns' aim, probably coming to the same conclusion about her height. Climbing up the to the higher ledge, he looked back to her.

"Stay here." He frowned as she put her hand on her hips. "Let me just take a look first…"

She relented, and he disappeared into the doorway. After a few moments and the sound of a few bear traps snapping closed, he reemerged.

"Clear."

He offered her a hand, and she climbed up. She, in turn, helped Follows-Chalk, and they entered the doorway, which Layla noted was adorned with brahmin and human skulls. The door led to small cavern, one that looked lived-in. There was a computer terminal, a sleeping bag, and duffle bag in a small enclosure.

Looking through the duffle bag, Layla found a few maps rolled up together. Among them was the map of the Grand Staircase they were searching for.

"Thank you, Mister Clark," Layla said with a smile. Boone looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Randall Clark; he was here right after the war," she explained. "Lived in the canyon. He's the one who killed all the Vault Dwellers." She moved to the computer terminal. "He's probably got a few entries on here."

Switching on the power, she began reading through the logs.

"What's it say?" Boone asked, poking through the ammo in the duffel bag.

Layla frowned. She had found another entry earlier today while she and Follows-Chalk had been looking for broc flowers. Clark had indeed killed the militant Vault Dwellers, but had befriended one that hadn't been infected. Eventually, she'd become pregnant, and he had been somewhere between thrilled and terrified about it.

She hadn't mentioned that part to Boone because the baby had died in childbirth, along with the mother. She was already upset about Waking Cloud's husband as it was; Cass had stopped them on the way out of the camp and informed them of the tribal's loss. Thinking about Waking Cloud or Clark again brought her close to tears, and she bit her lip to hold them back. She was fairly certain she wouldn't be able to get the story out of her mouth without dissolving into a sobbing mess, which really wasn't something she wanted either of her companions to see.

Boone was staring at her, and she realized she hadn't answered him. Looking down at the terminal, she read the new entries.

"Ummm… He saw some feral ghouls for the first time. Scared the crap out of him, can't blame him there. Put them out of their misery…" She skipped over the part about the man contemplating suicide. "Found a pack of kids that wandered into Zion."

"That's it?"

"Yep, probably another terminal in the canyon somewhere with more. Knowing him, he probably helped the kids out." Layla didn't say that knowing him and the way his luck went, something terrible had probably happened to them as well.

Boone didn't say anything, but the look he gave her said he knew she hadn't told him everything. Sometimes she thought he could read her mind.

* * *

><p>Thanks a lot chapter, now I have to sweet-talk my in-laws into sending me some more Café Du Monde.<p>

Anyway, in light of the missed update last week, there will be an extra chapter update on July 4th! With it, there will be an announcement about the series in general, and the next installment in particular. "My Peace I Give Unto You" will conclude next Wednesday.

Thanks for reading, thanks in advanced if you review, favorite or add an alert! See you on Saturday :D


	8. Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Layla yawned into her hand; she'd been out scouting for White Leg camps with Boone, Follows-Chalk and Cass since daybreak. She moved her hand away and found Boone and Follows-Chalk giving her an eerily similar look of strained patience. She was supposed to be maintaining silence as they skirted around one of the camps.

She gave them both a sheepish look as they continued, moving to higher ground. Soon they were far enough from the camp to watch it without being detected. Boone looked through his scope at the camp, and Layla squinted in its direction. She couldn't see past the trees on the ridge. Looking behind her, she saw a higher ledge.

"I'm gonna get higher up…" she said. "I've got my binoculars."

"I'll go with," said Cass. "I can't see shit from here."

Boone nodded, going back to his scope as both women started climbing to the higher level. A few moments later, they found a mound of rock, surrounded by trees.

There was a skeleton propped up against the rock wall. Layla frowned at it for a moment, then noticed the duffle bag next to the body. The bag looked like several of the others she'd found in the canyon.

"Cass…" she hissed, moving closer to the body. "I think this is Clark."

"Huh?" The other woman turned her way.

Layla opened the bag and looked through its contents. Among the stack of ammunition was a rifle with the word 'stop' scratched on the stock. The other side had another word, one Layla didn't recognize. At the bottom was a holotape, which was what she had been looking for.

She downloaded the file onto her Pip-Boy. Cass looked over her shoulder as she read what turned out to be another of Randall Clark's journal entries. The log told more about the children he'd found, that he had started helping them survive the canyon and given them gifts. She bit her lip as she continued reading.

_"...January 18th_  
><em> Have I mentioned that I'm dying?<em>

_ Mind's still sharp. Lungs are the problem. Might be cancer. Cough's been getting worse for months, finally there's blood in it. Getting harder to visit my little friends, breath's so short._

_ I've given away most of what I own. They'll find the rest in caves when they get a little older. I don't want them to find me, though. "The Father" is a broken-down old man? Disappointment._

_ It's time. I don't want another birthday._

_ January 23rd_  
><em> It's cold enough that I won't last long on the high mound up next to Red Gate. I think I've got enough breath left in me to make it. I'll just lie down and stare at the sky. Feels right.<em>

_ I hope they'll do well. I hope no harm comes to them, from within or without. Did my best to prepare them with the last notes. Said something kind about each one of them, what makes each one special. Told them "The Father" was pleased by their kind natures and that it would be up to them to handle things on their own from now on, that I'd be silent but still watching and still caring..."_

"Oh god," Layla said. "_He's_ the Father in the Caves."

Cass nodded. "We can't tell the Sorrows."

"That their god was just a good man?" The Courier bit her lip. "No, we can't tell them."

The rest of the log included goodbyes to both of his families, and his thoughts on him living even though they had died.

_"...Maybe the only point of all that living was to keep those pictures in my head going for as long as I could. It was the only life I could give you. Not a day went by without._

_ It wasn't choice. I chose to die again and again. Just never did. Body had its own drive._

_ Well, the little ones will need it. Species will need it if it's to continue. That blind drive onward._

_ I wish them well. It's been a gift to me, at the end of it all, to behold innocence._

_ Goodbye, Zion._

_ Randall Dean Clark_  
><em> Feb 5th, 2053 - Jan 2124" <em>

Layla couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

*.*.*

Boone moved up the hill, wondering why Layla and Cass were taking so long. Follows-Chalk was at his side, looking worried. He'd clearly been around the Courier long enough to know her penchant for trouble. Climbing up to the flat surface of the ridge, he heard what sounded like crying and immediately rushed toward the source.

Turning from a bend in the path, he found Layla sitting near a skeleton, sobbing. Cass was standing next to her, gently rubbing her back with one hand and apparently fighting back tears as well. Boone didn't see any injuries, and he recognized the difference between pained sobs and emotional distress when he heard it. The caravaneer turned as they approached.

"Are you-" he started, but Cass cut him off.

"Leave." Her tone wasn't unkind, but she sounded insistent. "We're okay. Just go wait for us down the hill."

Hesitating for a moment, he turned to leave when Cass motioned impatiently for him to go. Once they were away from the girls, he found Follows-Chalk giving him a confused look.

"I don't understand."

"Neither do I."

He lead the younger man down the path. Once they were too far away to hear Layla's crying, but close enough to hear if they called for them, he stopped. He wouldn't have left Layla as she was, too distraught to be watching her back, but Cass had been with her.

He liked Cass, even though she was a bad influence on Layla. The caravaneer was tough and had a nose for trouble. Boone had once worried whenever the two of them went off on their own; Layla was definitely getting better at defending herself, but she was a mess after two drinks. Cass, on the other hand, seemed to be deadlier than normal when she'd been drinking. On the surface the woman seemed like a foul-mouthed drunkard, but in reality, she was caring and loyal.

If he had to guess at what had upset the Courier, he'd bet it was something to do with either Randall Clark or Waking Cloud's husband. A pang of sympathy echoed in Boone's chest at the thought of the tribal. He was familiar with her pain.

The sniper looked up and found Follows-Chalk still gazing back in the girls' direction, looking like he wanted to go back to them. The kid and Layla had become fast friends, and he was young enough not to know he should keep out of women's hair when they told him to.

Sighing, Boone surveyed the area from their spot. A good amount of the canyon was visible, and he pulled his rifle off his back and looked through the scope. This was a better vantage point that where they'd been before. He could see White Legs milling around.

"Are there many?" Follows-Chalk asked, looking down at the camp. Boone nodded. Now that the tribal mentioned it, there were an awful lot of White Legs for a simple scouting camp. Frowning, he noted the warriors were pointing at a map drawn in the dirt, looking grim as they spoke. They weren't scouting, they were preparing to attack. A moment later, the group broke, and several of the warriors started running in different direction out of the camp.

"They don't usually move alone…" Follows-Chalk said, "or that fast."

"They're delivering messages," Boone said grimly. "Planning an attack." Judging by the size of the group that remained and the number of messengers that had left, they were planning something big.

"Hey," Cass called from behind, and Boone turned. She was walking their way, Layla in tow. The Courier was attempting to look normal, but her eyes were puffy and red. He decided against calling attention to it, instead looking back at the scout camp.

"We've got a problem."

*.*.*

The group separated as they reentered the Narrows. They were going to call a meeting to discuss what the Sorrows were going to do. They'd agreed the tribe should make the decision themselves. Cass and Boone were off to find Waking Cloud and the Sorrows' leaders, Follows-Chalk was going to find Joshua, and Layla squared her shoulders as she marched herself toward Daniel. She found him sitting at a fire pit near one of the sleeping areas. As she got closer, he seemed to notice her coming. Judging by the way he stood and adopted a guarded look, he was suspecting trouble.

"Hello again," he said neutrally.

"Hey. Listen, we're calling a meeting."

"Oh? And what for?"

"The White Legs are planning a major attack for tonight."

"What?" There was shock on his face, but it faded into a determined look. "We need to get the evacuation underway. Go get… What?" he asked, seeing the frown on the girl's face.

"We're also having the meeting to decide whether to evacuate or fight."

"No… Why?" The missionary sounded exasperated. "Joshua has asked that we fight them, hasn't he?"

"Yes, and the Dead Horses support him. It's the Sorrows that have to decide."

"Why should they be forced to spill blood over a piece of land?"

Layla frowned at that.

"It's their home," she answered. "And no one's forcing them to do anything. That's why we're having this meeting."

The missionary looked upset at this turn of events, and Layla sighed.

"I understand your concerns," she said, "but these people have the right to choose."

"This isn't just about their home. It's their souls…" Daniel said. "When we made contact with the Sorrows, we were trying to help them see our ways, not goad them to violence."

"Joshua is willing to fight, and he's a New Canaanite…" She almost regretted saying it when she saw the missionary's face.

"Joshua is a living bible of all of man's miseries of war, a monument of cruelty and forgiveness." Layla hadn't heard Daniel ever really speak of his fellow New Canaanite before, and it seemed she was getting his real opinion, not the 'We New Canaanites stick together' version. "Every inch of him is burned. And as he burns, he consumes everyone around him. Joshua wants to fight because the White Legs have stoked the naked fire in him."

"You've seen the light, but you've yet to feel the heat," he continued. "I can pray that you never will, but it isn't up to me, or God. Only Joshua."

Layla didn't know what to say, but found the man clearly waiting for her to speak. Just as she opened her mouth, she heard footsteps approaching her from behind.

"Everyone's waiting," Cass said. Layla turned to her, grateful for her interruption.

"Let's go then," Daniel said, still sounding unhappy.

*.*.*

"We've already been preparing to evacuate. Everyone knows what they need to do, and this will be the best way to keep casualties low." Daniel flashed a impatient look over to The Burned Man. "If we fight, there will be many more casualties."

Cass kept her snort to herself; the missionary had a penchant for stating the obvious. In all honesty, she didn't know what to think of the coming decision. Both sides had merit. She had to hand it Layla; calling a meeting to decide it had been the best idea. No matter what came of it, at least the Sorrows would have a say in their own fate.

The meeting was being held in White Bird's cave. The shaman, Waking Cloud and a few other Sorrows were standing with Daniel at the fire pit in the center of the room. The caravaneer noticed Waking Cloud's occasional dirty looks directed at Daniel, and she still couldn't blame the woman. A group of Dead Horses were gathered with Graham against the far wall. Follows-Chalk stood nervously at the back of the group, occasionally looking at the Courier, who stood with Cass and Boone near the entrance of the room .

"The White Legs will pursue you if you leave Zion," Graham said, stepping forward. "They would not survive the Grand Staircase, but would see you dead before they perished. We need to take the fight to them, destroy them before they can destroy you."

"The Sorrows deserve to make this decision themselves," Layla spoke up, looking more serious than the older woman had ever seen her before.

"The White Legs will destroy this place and all traces of your people in it if you evacuate," the Courier said as she looked at the gathered Sorrows. "I'm not saying your lives are less important than your home, but is important enough that you have to choose for yourselves."

Cass noted the reactions to the Courier's words. Daniel clearly hadn't expected Layla's speech, and looked unhappy. The Burned Man was hard to read, but Cass was pretty sure he was pleased, as were the Dead Horses. The Sorrows looked grave, and had started speaking amongst themselves.

"We can't let the White Legs lead the Sorrows down the path of aggression," Daniel said. "We New Canaanites brought this on them. We should do what we can to shield them from more violence." Cass ground her teeth.

"They're not children!" she snapped, a little surprised with herself. "You can't protect them from everything! If they're going to survive here or anywhere, they have to be able to take care of themselves." That shut Daniel up, and Cass caught Layla grinning at her. The Courier turned back to the Sorrows, addressing them directly.

"Zion was a gift to you from The Father in the Caves, and you need to be the ones to decide what will happen to it."

The Sorrows went back to their own discussion. After a few moments, White Bird turned to the gathered group and spoke.

"We fight for Zion."

Most of the room seemed pleased. Daniel looked sorrowful. Graham stepped forward again, and Cass could feel the energy in the room change when the Burned Man took charge.

"The White Legs are undoubtedly waiting for nightfall to attack. Layla-" He looked the Courier's way. "What time is it?"

"Eleven," she answered. "Sunset's been around five lately."

Graham nodded. "That gives us six hours. We need to plan our attack."

*.*.*

"One of these days your clothes are just going to fall apart around you," Layla said as she dug around her bag for her sewing kit. "And what are you going to do then?"

"Get you to sew them back together," Boone answered as he started taking apart his rifle. He hadn't had a chance to clean it for a couple days, way too long for comfort. The two of them were sitting in the workshop cave in the Dead Horse camp. Preparations for the coming battle had been efficiently handled between Graham and Daniel, despite their conflicting views. Now all that was left was to wait for sunset.

The Courier had looked relieved when he came asking her to mend a tear in his shirt, probably happy to have something to do.

"And what will you do if I'm not around?" Layla asked as she examined the jagged hole in the cloth.

He shrugged. "Fight naked."

Layla laughed as she threaded her needle. "That could be useful against the Legionaries, confuse them with burning desire. "

Boone grunted at that, and a comfortable silence fell over them, the kind that usually lasted as long as it took Layla to think of something to talk about.

"I wonder if Veronica and Arcade got that holo-vid player to work…"

Boone shrugged as he started cleaning the bore of his rifle. "Probably." He heard the girl chuckle.

"It's weird, I've stayed in places semi-permanently before, but the 38's the first one that felt like home since I left California…"

Boone frowned; his last home had been Novac, but it hadn't really been a home for a long time. The closest he got to feeling at home whenever he was with-

The sight of Graham appearing at the entrance interrupted his thoughts. The Burned Man nodded a greeting to them and moved toward the table piled with guns in the center of the cave. He sat and picked up one of the guns, pulled back the slide and checked the chamber, ejected the magazine, then inspected it and the gun's barrel before he replacing it. Boone made the conscious decision not to be bothered by his presence, and instead went back to cleaning his rifle.

Glancing in Layla's direction, he found she was absorbed with her sewing. She grumbled a curse as she pricked her finger. She rubbed the spot, looking back up.

"So, what's with the guns?" she asked Graham. "Follows-Chalk said something about them winning the west?"

"They were developed by one of my people hundreds of years ago," Graham answered as he continued inspecting the guns. "Learning to use one is a rite of passage to the New Canaanites."

"Hm." The girl started on another hole in the shirt. "Blessed are the peacemakers."

"Yes." He sounded pleased. "Are you a woman of faith?" he asked. Layla smiled.

"Undecided," she answered. "But I'm a firm proponent of 'to each his own'… so long as it doesn't hurt others."

"That is a wise stance, for a nonbeliever at any rate. Have you read our scripture?"

"Daniel gave me a copy," Layla said, smirking. "But I read it once as a kid. Same problem as back then, though: starts out really interesting, but when it gets to everyone 'begetting' everyone else, it starts losing me."

"You would not be the first to make such a complaint." The amused tone was back in Graham's voice, but as he continued, he grew more serious. "In a world filled with misery and uncertainty, it is a great comfort to know that, in the end, there is light in the darkness. Every day we move closer to our judgment. We must do our best to walk in the footsteps of the Lord and teach others how to do the same."

"For many of us, the road is a difficult one," he continued. "But the path is always there for us to follow, no matter how many times we may fall."

"Do you ever fall?" the Courier asked.

"Every day," the Burned Man said somberly. "Some days are… harder than others."

There was silence in the cave for a few minutes, broken only by the clacking of slides in pistols. Boone rummaged through his pack for his gun oil and looked up to see a frown on Layla's face.

"Even in our most innocent actions can wickedness take root," Graham continued. "It was my loyalty to Caesar that brought my greatest fall."

"Well, blind loyalty can be dangerous," Layla said, smiling in Boone's direction. "I know certain people who would ignore their well-being and walk into Fortification Hill to rescue their idiot friend."

"What were you doing there?" Graham asked with growing interest. "The Legion is not welcoming, especially to women."

"Well, a personal invitation from Caesar is hard to ignore…"

Layla's eyes widened as she finished her sentence. Biting her lip, she glanced sheepishly at Boone before looking back to Graham.

"I wasn't sure why he wanted to even deal with me. I guess he wanted to hire me, thirty pieces of silver and all. It didn't go so well because I wouldn't kill a hostage… and Boone and Raul, he's another one of my friends, got me out." She said the last part quickly, glancing Boone's way again.

Graham nodded. "So that's how Caesar died."

The Courier gaped at him, probably confirming what he'd guessed. Layla, unsurprisingly, continued speaking.

"All hell had already broken loose by the time Boone and Raul found me. Caesar had gotten me cornered at one point, and Boone shot him while we were escaping."

Graham said nothing for a few moments, and Boone wondered if he was angry. The sniper was suddenly acutely aware that his rifle was in pieces and Graham was surrounded by weapons. Just as he was starting to form an emergency plan, the Burned Man spoke.

"You've done the Mojave a favor for certain. Edward only had concern for himself and his conquests…"

"Edward?" Layla asked, sounding confused.

"Caesar… His name was once Edward Sallow."

The girl bit her lip and let out a small snort of laughter. She covered her mouth and looked embarrassed.

"Yes, doesn't quite have the same effect as 'Caesar,' does it?" Graham said, sounding amused again. "I think he was afraid when he heard rumors of my survival. He sent his frumentarii to find me."

"Don't get me started on frumentarii," Layla said sourly. "I've got bad luck with them."

"When I had first heard of your arrival, I thought you were one of them."

"Really? They let a few dames in and I didn't hear about it?"

"No, but the one I expected poses as a courier, and has been for a long time."

Layla looked thoughtful for a moment before she spoke again. "Well, I don't know why Caesar thought I'd work with him at any rate. He had people watching me, and I've clearly been working with House and the NCR. The Legion is about to attack for the dam again…" The Burned Man looked up at that. "I don't know where my loyalties lie. Well, I do… but I need to…" She sighed, and Boone saw the face she made when she was trying to get her thoughts in order.

Graham had stopped sorting the guns on the table and turned a piercing gaze toward the Courier.

"If you learn nothing else from this place, from me, learn this: don't let your loyalty turn you into a monster."

Boone's hand tightened on the stock of his rifle as Graham continued.

"My fall came in small concessions that piled ever higher. By the time it was too late, I was too twisted and vile to see it."

Layla's face was hard as she stared off into space. The silence in the cave was eventually broken when Graham went back to his guns. A few moments later, Layla's face cleared as she looked at the shirt in her hands.

"I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it," she said lightly, then held up the shirt to Boone.

"All done," she said, hopping off the rock ledge she'd been sitting on. She casually dropped the shirt on Boone's head as she walked by him.

"I'll send you the bill," she said, and he saw her grin as he untangled it from his head and pulled it on. She stretched her shoulders until they popped. "I'm going to go check on Daniel…" Layla blew out a breath. "He's not happy about any of this."

"He has been wary of promoting aggression to the Sorrows," Graham noted.

The Courier nodded. "He's afraid we'll fail. I can't blame him for not wanting what happened to New Canaan to happen here." She started for the cavern entrance. "Be back in a few minutes…"

"She shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her." The Burned Man said with a sagely tone as Boone watched her go.

Boone didn't respond, refusing to look at the man as he went back to his rifle. As he started to piece the weapon back together, he could feel the Burned Man's gaze on him.

"You were in 1st Recon," he said simply. Boone nodded, feeling himself tense slightly.

"I suppose I have to thank you," he said, which made the sniper look up at him. "You and the Rangers were responsible for my defeat at Hoover Dam. Without Caesar making an example of me for my failure, I'd still be on the path of sin and destruction."

That hadn't been what Boone had expected him to say, and he stared back at the man. Graham's eyes bored into him as he continued.

"You have the manner of a man with regrets, something I believe I can understand."

The sniper remained silent. The Burned Man's tone had been more somber than he expected.

Boone sighed, setting down the half-reassembled pieces of his rifle and looked at Graham. "You'll never make up for what you did." He looked back down at his rifle. "And neither will I."

"Why do you go on, if you can't atone?" The question sounded rhetorical, but Boone answered anyway.

"I'm still alive. I can still try to do what's right. Help people. It won't make up for what I've done… but it's all I can do."

The Burned Man didn't respond, and both men went back to tending to their weapons. The silence was unbroken until footsteps approached the entrance to the cavern.

"It's almost sunset," Layla said as she returned. "I think we're ready."

Graham nodded, standing. "Gather the warriors and let us prepare for battle."

* * *

><p>Don't forget to tune in on Monday for another chapter!<p> 


	9. I Will Fear No Evil

See waterpeach, I listened to Rin Okiawa's 'I"ll Be Your Home,' when I wrote that part last chapter. Most of these stories have a song I'd feature in my play list while writing.

* * *

><p>Layla spread one of Randall Clark's maps on the ground. It gave an incomplete view of the canyon, and she hastily drew the missing pieces in the surrounding dirt using her Pip-Boy map as a guide. Dead Horses and Sorrows were gathered around, soon joined by Graham.<p>

Layla stood and carefully stepped away from the map, moving closer to Cass and Boone as the Burned Man addressed the gathered group.

"The scouting parties have determined that the White Legs are planning a major attack tonight. By their positioning, we can determine they were planning on striking the Dead Horse camp here and the Narrows at the same time." He pointed to both spots on the map.

"We are going to use this to our advantage," he continued. "This camp will be emptied before nightfall. All non-combatants are going to stay at the Sorrows camp, in the caves. A team led by Daniel will remain to defend the Narrows. Another team will be at the mouth of the canyon, split on either side to make a crossfire. They will be lead by Rose of Sharon."

Cass frowned at the mention of her first name, but nodded. She shot a glare at Layla, probably for having told him, but the Courier ignored it as Graham continued.

"Three teams will attack the White Legs at their camp in Three Marys." He pointed to the spot on the map. "The first strike team, led by Running River, will pave the way for the second team by weakening the defensive line with strike and fade attacks."

"We make them fear Dead Horse fire and thunder," said Running River, a slight but fierce-looking woman.

"Good," Graham answered, then continued. "The second team will be the main force. They will push their way to the main camp. Storm Crow will lead them." The tribal he indicated, a tall man with an impressive number of tattoos, nodded gravely.

"The last team will be myself, Boone, and Layla. We will take an alternate route through the caves. With any luck we'll be able to reach their leader, Salt-Upon-Wounds, and end the battle quickly." He looked at the group assembled, "Are there any questions?"

There was no answer, though Layla noticed Cass had pointed a raised eyebrow at her when Graham announced the last team. Layla looked down at the map again; the scattered White Leg force would make things easy… she hoped. Drops of water began appearing on the paper and surrounding dirt. Turning her gaze upward, she saw angry looking clouds gathering above them as the last rays of daylight faded.

"Good," Graham said, looking up as well. "The rain will mask our movements." He looked around the group again. "Be wary of sneak attacks and watch over your teams. God be with you."

The two Dead Horse team leaders went to their groups to discuss their individual plans. Cass gave Boone and Layla an appraising look.

"Teacher's pet, huh?" she said, causing Layla scoff. "Try not to get killed."

"You too," the Courier answered. Cass nodded and walked off, leaving Boone and Layla alone while Graham spoke to each team leader. The Courier looked up at the clouds again as the rain started to pick up.

"Uh… Boone?" The sniper looked her way. "Is it different shooting in the rain?"

He gave her a blank look, and she glowered back at him. "What? I only know three things to do in the rain: fish, sing, and get out of the rain." Shaking his head marginally, he answered.

"There's not much difference at the range you'll be shooting. You'll need to clean and re-oil anything you've fired once the battle's over. The worst will be making sure your hands don't slip on the handle or when you try to pull the slide."

Nodding, Layla checked her gun. "Okay, I think we'll be good then."

"Are you ready?" Graham said as he joined them, "We'll travel with Storm Crow until we reach Three Marys. Then we'll need your Pip-Boy map." Layla grinned, slightly giddy at the thought of fighting alongside Graham.

"Lead on."

Running River's team had already left, moving quickly out of sight. Storm Crow's larger team kept pace with Graham, Boone, and Layla as they made their way through the canyon. The Courier squinted; the rain was making it hard to see now that it was dark, but it also covered any noise they made. Of course, that meant it would cover the noise of any approaching White Legs as well.

As she checked her Pip-Boy, she noticed that Graham stayed near her side while Boone lagged behind. Aside from the rain, the canyon was quiet; nothing seemed to be moving as they waded through the Virgin River.

The rain was falling steadily now, and Layla found herself getting nervous. The larger force moving with them was too big not to be noticed. The White Legs had to know they were coming.

Just as the thought formed, a tomahawk slashed the air inches from her head and embedded itself in a nearby tree. A line of White Legs had appeared along the higher ridge they were following.

The Courier was reminded of a shooting gallery as Graham, Boone and Storm Crow shot the attacking White Legs down one-by-one. The noise quieted down as Graham shot the face off the last White Leg.

"Turn off your Pip-Boy light," Boone said quietly as he rejoined her. "They're aiming for it."

Layla quickly complied as they continued through the canyon. After the first attack, Graham had Storm Crow and his team spread out, moving into the shadows. Other White Leg attack groups sprung up along the river bank. Boone and Graham were picking off White Legs before Layla could even spot them. Eventually she shook her head, holstered her gun, and squinted at the darkened map on her Pip-Boy.

As they approached a bend in the canyon, Storm Crow made a noise like a bird, and the Dead Horses all froze. Graham had already moved against the rock wall, and Boone followed his lead, motioning for Layla to do the same. Just as she'd done so, gunfire echoed in the canyon.

"I think they're on to us…" Layla said as another bullet pinged off the wall.

"They were prepared," Graham said, peering around the wall. He pulled his head back as a bullet splintered the rock. He looked over to Boone. "How many have us sighted?"

"Two. One's got an anti-materiel rifle," the sniper said tersely. "I can get the one with the rifle. The other one's got a 12.7 auto; he's on the northern ridge, about fifteen feet up. You're going to have to get him."

Graham nodded and both men jumped away from the wall. Layla barely had a chance to see where they were aiming before they'd both hit their marks.

"Come on, we have to keep moving before more find us on the ridge," Graham called back. Storm Crow moved along with his team, and Layla followed. Just as she was about to turn the corner, she heard rapid footsteps behind her.

She turned in time to see a White Leg with a fire axe advancing on her.

"Crap!" She pulled her pistol from her holster, backing away as she fired until the gun was empty. Not a single shot hit.

The White Leg was nearly on her now, and Layla struggled to reload her pistol. By the time she looked up, the man was swinging his axe. She was barely able to dodge the swing, and the tribal slammed bodily into her before she could regain her balance.

She landed on the ground with a cry and looked up to see the man about to swing down on her. Before he got a chance, Graham pistol whipped him from behind. The White Leg clattered to the ground and didn't move.

Layla scrambled to her feet and found Graham looking at her.

"You're… not very good with that."

"I never said I was!" she cried, trying not to blush. Holstering the pistol, she pulled her shotgun off her back. "Why do you think I keep a sniper around all the time?"

Graham shook his head. "This is where we break off from the others," he said, indicating another fork in the river. "Storm Crow will be rushing the main path while we go through the caves." The Burned Man faced the tribal. "Strike quickly, go with God."

Storm Crow nodded gravely, and soon his team was making their way into the main entrance of the Three Marys. Graham turned to Layla and Boone.

"Let us go quickly. I don't want Salt-Upon-Wounds escaping."

*.*.*

Waking Cloud watched the entrance to the Narrows with trepidation. The White Leg attack should have started by now, at least according to Joshua Graham's appraisal. But so far there were no attacks.

She'd noticed that Cass was starting to look particularly sour. Just as she was about to speak to the woman, there was noise from the entrance.

The small team of Dead Horse Warriors and Sorrows hunters all readied their weapons, but Cass suddenly called out.

"Hold on, it's Follows-Chalk!"

The group relaxed as the young tribal came into view. He was gasping for air as he tried to speak.

"White… Legs… were…"

"Breathe," Cass said, and the Dead Horse complied, taking deep breaths. A moment later, he tried to speak again.

"The White Legs have taken prisoners," Follows-Chalk gasped out, "at a ranger station to the north. I think they were Sorrows. I came back to get help."

Now Cass was glowering. "Well, we're going to have to help them." She looked at the assembled team. "All right, Waking Cloud, you're coming with me. Clear Skies, you're in charge here." One of the Sorrows hunters nodded. Waking Cloud followed her as she joined Follows-Chalk.

"All right, lead the way."

They hurried up the river. The rain was coming down in sheets now. If there was anything in the area, she'd never hear it over the noise.

"There are no animals in the canyon…" Waking Cloud noted, looking nervous.

"The rain?" Follows-Chalk offered, but the woman shook her head.

"The geckos would be out. They must fear the battle."

"Keeps them out of our hair," Cass said. "Let's keep going."

It didn't take long to reach the ranger station. Cass squinted up the hill. There were three Sorrows visible in the station, locked into a gated area at the base of the structure. They looked unharmed, but knowing the White Legs, that wouldn't last.

"I only see two guards," the caravaneer said. "We just need to take them out quickly before they try to hurt the prisoners…"

"I'll take the one closest to the Sorrows," Follows-Chalk said, pulling the war club from his hip.

"Can you keep it quiet?" Cass asked.

"Like a ghost's shadow," he said.

"Good. Once you've got that one, we'll take the other."

The Dead Horse nodded and carefully started for the ranger station. Cass and Waking Cloud followed at a distance, coming to a stop as they neared the building. The Dead Horse moved quickly, coming up behind the White Leg and swinging his war club down on the other tribal's head. Cass grimaced as she heard the squelching noise the man's head made as Follows-Chalk caved it in.

As soon as the body hit the ground, Cass leveled her rifle at the other White Leg and dropped him with three quick shots. She moved to rejoin Follows-Chalk and was nearly shot as a third White Leg appeared from the side of the building. She dropped to one knee, taking a few potshots at the woman and missing.

Before she could reload, Waking Cloud appeared at the White Leg's side, swinging her yao guai gauntlet. The other tribal screamed as claws ripped into her, then fell to the ground.

Cass got back to her feet as Follows-Chalk held up a key from the tribal he'd taken out. Cass nodded, and he unlocked the gate holding the captive Sorrows.

"Thank you, friend. We found White Legs going to destroy burial mound. They caught us. They will try to defile holy place again."

Waking Cloud looked distraught at the news, and Cass nodded grimly. "Come on, let's go stop them."

*.*.*

The caves of Three Marys were, for the most part, deserted. Boone found it very suspicious. The caverns ran through the whole area. Their very mission was taking advantage of that. Why wouldn't the White Legs guard them?

Graham and Layla were ahead of him; the Burned Man was scanning the area while the Courier kept her eyes on her Pip-Boy.

"Left here," she said, and looked up a the cavern. "I've got a bad feeling about this place…"

"Be wary, the White Legs are known for setting traps," Graham murmured.

The Courier frowned; that hadn't been the assurance she'd been looking for.

"The exit should be here," Layla said. "There's a large, open area ahead with a few cave openings. We'll have to figure out where to go from there."

Boone saw Graham nod, then step in front of the girl as he shot at something ahead of them. The sniper ran to his side to find three White Legs waiting for them at the mouth of the cave.

Graham had already shot two dead, and Boone dropped the last one. Stepping over the bodies, Graham took a cautious step out of the cave. Once the Burned Man motioned for them to follow, Boone stepped out an surveyed the immediate area for hostiles. As far as he could tell, the ravine was deserted.

"Something's not right…" he said as Graham and Layla joined him.

"Why wouldn't they put more guards in a section with this many entrances and exits?" Layla said, squinting into the darkness. "Did Storm Crow already clear them out?"

"No bodies," Graham said. "They may have been chased out, though."

Boone moved further into the open, still scanning the area. Just as he stepped out of the shadows, two White Legs appeared on the upper ridge of the ravine. They threw tomahawks, both missing as he quickly took them down with one shot each.

He heard Layla gasped and turned, Graham had caught one of the tomahawks in the shoulder.

"Boone, cover us," she cried as she started frantically digging through her medical supplies. She looked up just as Graham tugged the spiked weapon free of his flesh.

"No time. We have to keep moving," he said as he moved past the Courier and Boone, starting down the ravine again. Mouth still hanging open, Layla looked at the sniper, who shrugged. Shaking her head, she hurried to catch up.

They came to an area with several cave entrances, and Layla stopped a moment to look over her map. Three White Legs suddenly appeared from one of the caves, shooting in their direction. Boone moved toward them, firing two shots to down the one at the back of the group who was sporting an anti-materiel rifle. Graham had already shot down the other two cleanly before Boone had to switch his attention to them.

"Okay," Layla said, seemingly unconcerned with the three tribals they'd just dispatched. "We should go through the north cave, that way-"

There was a thunderous explosion from the rock arch above the ravine, and a small avalanche of boulders tumbled to the ground. Boone dove for the mouth of the nearest cave, which shielding him from the rock slide. Once the dust cleared, he got to his feet and moved to check on the others.

Leaving the mouth of the cave, he looked around and found Graham pulling himself to his feet. He didn't look any more injured than he already had been.

"Layla…" he said. Boone quickly scanned the area. She was no where to be found.

"Layla!" he shouted, hoping she was merely on the other side of the avalanche. His stomach started twisting when he heard no response.

"LAYLA?"

"I'm okay!" her voice filtered from the other side of the pile. "I think there's a cave that leads back to you. I'm gonna… Oh shit!" Boone heard her shotgun firing.

"We have to get to her," he said to Graham. "They're going to kill her." He caught the hard look in the Burned Man's eyes.

"They won't kill her. Not before they torture her for information."

Boone grimaced, backing up to get a better look at the avalanche. If he could safely mount the pile of stone blocking the way, he could cover Layla. But the pile was too unstable. He wouldn't be able to get any good footholds.

"Down!" Graham suddenly shouted, and Boone dropped to one knee. There was a peel of gunfire from the Burned Man's .45, and he heard a thud behind him. A White Leg with a fire axe had been sneaking up on him. Four more were behind the one Graham had dropped, and Boone quickly got to his feet, backing away from the group.

A tomahawk nearly caught him in the leg as he reached Graham, and he shot the thrower through the neck. There were three tribals left, all advancing their way. Just as his back hit the wall behind him, he heard a noise to the side.

"Two more to the west!" Boone cried as he barely dodged another tomahawk. The projectiles were starting to get on his nerves. He didn't linger on the thought as he picked off the White Leg that had Graham pinned down. The Burned Man had taken a few hits, but didn't seem to care.

They had to hurry and get to Layla, but more and more tribals poured in to surround them. Graham backed closer to him, picking off a few more of the newcomers.

"They must think taking us will win them the battle," the Burned Man said grimly as he reloaded. "This was a trap."

Boone couldn't argue with that; there were more White Legs crowding them now than he'd seen in one place the whole night.

He bit down a cry as white hot pain shot through him. He'd taken a bullet to the left upper arm. Trying to shrug off the pain, he realized the shot had come from behind. Turning, he found another group of White Legs sneaking up from the cave behind them.

"Graham, five from the north!" They were completely surrounded now.

*.*.*

"There they are," Follows-Chalk said as the group reached the burial site. Wooden scaffolding lined the rock wall, holding wrapped bodies in various stages of decay. "Looks like they haven't done anything yet."

"I wonder what they're waiting for?" Waking Cloud murmured.

"Well shit, let's not let them figure it out," Cass said, looking at the gathered tribals. "These are hardened White Leg warriors. Hit them hard and fast so they can't wear us down."

Once she saw the others acknowledge her, she leapt out from her spot, rifle already firing. The first White Leg to notice them didn't get a chance to react before the redhead shot his jaw off.

The area exploded into chaos as three White Legs rushed them, one almost running directly into Waking Cloud's yao guai gauntlet. The other two moved quicker, one throwing a tomahawk. Cass managed to dodge the projectile, but one of the recently freed Sorrows caught the weapon in the chest.

The woman let out a scream and dropped to the ground. Cass grimaced as she kept pumping rounds into the oncoming warriors. Follows-Chalk had been trying to sneak around the White Legs to surprise them from behind, but two others had been lying in wait. They sprung out at him, and the Dead Horse barely ducked behind a rock to avoid being gunned down.

Waking Cloud and Dancing Flame tried to reach him, but the White Legs were splitting their fire between Follows-Chalk's rock and their approach.

Cass grimaced as a bullet nicked her leg. This wasn't going well.

*.*.*

Boone grimaced as he smelled gas. They'd already run into a few White Legs with shishkebabs. One of the bastards must be heading their way. He and Graham had managed to shoot a hole through the circle of White Legs surrounding them and had run out of the crossfire. They were almost backed against another wall as the tribals continued to pursue them. The sniper was surprised they hadn't been killed already.

"They're trying to take us alive," Graham said as he reloaded. "They'll want to execute us in front of as many Dead Horses as possible."

"I'm not planning on letting them get me alive," Boone muttered.

"Good," the Burned Man growled. "Let's see if they can live long enough to take us."

Boone took aim at the White Legs further away, leaving the front line to Graham. As he looked through his scope, he saw flames spring up behind the attacking tribals. A moment later, screams erupted from the back of the group.

A flaming White Leg crashed to the ground in front of him as the group parted, revealing Layla cutting her way through them with a shishkebab. Boone and Graham began picking off the remaining tribals as she set another one on fire. Soon the few survivors turned and ran.

Layla shook her flaming blade at the retreating White Legs as they disappeared from sight. A moment later, the flame sputtered and went out.

Moving to her, Boone found the Courier examining her new weapon.

"It broke," she said sadly, holding both ends of the broken fuel line in her hands.

"Are you okay?" Boone asked, looking her over for injuries.

"I'm fine," Layla said, untangling herself from the shishkebab and its fuel tank as Graham joined them.

"You're much better with melee weapons," he said, which made her laugh.

"Joshua, it was a big flaming sword. It's hard to not be deadly with that." She pulled her shotgun off her back.

"We'd better keep moving…" she said.

"Yes," said Graham, and Boone noticed he was starting to sound different, more fierce. He'd seen that in plenty of people before. The middle of a battle tends to bring out the savagery in people. But the fact that it was Graham and that his prior calm exterior was starting to fall away was cause for concern.

Graham took point as they continued into Three Marys. He no longer checked their course with Layla, instead following the river. Garbage littered the sides of the canyon pass, more than anywhere else he'd seen here. Boone could imagine what the While Legs would do to the rest of Zion if they took over.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, three of the tribals appeared in their path. Graham had already dropped two by the time Boone shot the last through the heart.

Looking further down the path, he saw another large stone arch further ahead, just above the path they'd have to take. Something about it didn't look right, and as he was about to say so, there was a thunderous boom that shook the ground.

The rocks of the archway started to fall, and the sniper turned, hooking an arm around Layla's waist as he dove away from rockslide. They both crashed to the ground as the archway collapsed into their path. Boone sat up, scanning the area for hostiles. Five White Legs were advancing on them, and he shot out one's legs before putting a round through another's eye. He and Layla quickly dispatched the rest.

"Joshua?" Layla called, as she reloaded. The Burned Man had just gotten to his feet. He looked agitated as he gazed at their now-blocked path.

"This is taking too long," he said impatiently. "I _will_ end this." He started for one of the cave entrances lining the valley wall.

Layla gaped at him as he left. "Wait!" He didn't respond as he disappeared into the cave.

The Courier stared at where he'd been, looking confused and worried. She shook it off and turned to Boone.

"What is he doing?"

The sniper shrugged, then winced as he disturbed his recent bullet wound. Layla gasped as she saw it.

"Hold on." She started digging through her bag.

"It's fine," he said. "Let's keep moving." The Courier stopped and gave him an impatient look.

"Oh no you don't." She pulled her medical supplies from her pack. "We've got to fix that up."

"We don't have time to stop for every minor wound..."

"Well, if I get wounded, we're sure as hell not ignoring it. Now hush up and let me do this quick…" She glanced in the direction Graham had gone. "We need to hurry."

*.*.*

"Fucking _cock-sucker_!" Cass screamed as she shot a White Leg point-blank. The tribal had just shot a hole through her hat, nearly missing her head. Looking over her shoulder, she found Follows-Chalk still pinned by the two White Legs that had ambushed him.

Grimacing, she started to loop around the burial site, careful to not disturb the scaffolding that held the dead aloft. Just as she approached the backs of the two remaining White Legs, one collapsed, sporting a new hole in her face courtesy of Follows-Chalk.

Cass slammed her rifle butt into the remaining White Leg's head. The tribal didn't seem too fazed by her attack and turned on her, swinging his mantis gauntlet. The redhead barely dodged and tried to bring her rifle to bear, but the White Leg didn't give her the chance.

The man suddenly cried out, going stiff. Dancing Flame had appeared behind him, swinging his yao guai gauntlet into the man's back. Cass quickly shot him in the face before he could move, dropping him.

She gasped as she surveyed the area. The White Legs were dead, and the burial site seemed unharmed.

"Are you okay?" Follows-Chalk asked as he reached her. Cass blew out a breath.

"Yeah." She looked over the others. With the exception of one serious tomahawk wound, they were okay. The wounded Sorrow was still alive, but was going to need more medical attention than she could get here.

"I will bind her wounds," Waking Cloud said, "but we need to get her back to the Narrows and Daniel."

Nodding, Cass sighed. "I hope the others are having a better time of this."

*.*.*

There were gunshots further ahead, and Layla moved as quickly as she could toward the cave exit. Up ahead was the end of the path, which meant they had to be getting close to the main White Legs camp. They stepped out of the cave into a narrow valley filled with hastily constructed sleeping mats and garbage. She was surprised to find that the fighting seemed to have stopped. Storm Crow and his team were rounding up White Leg prisoners. A few of the warriors were lined up on their knees next to one with an ornate skull-motif headdress. Layla figured this must be Salt-Upon-Wounds. The Burned Man stood near the bound prisoners.

"Ha," Layla said to Boone. "Joshua's already got them all-" she was interrupted when Graham shot the first two bound men in the backs of their heads. He then turned the gun on Salt-Upon-Wounds.

"We warned you at Syracuse, but you persisted," he said to the bound man. "You took advantage of us at New Canaan to drive us out. And like the Dogs of Caesar you are, you followed us to Zion." Layla was taken aback by the viciousness in his voice.

"And now you stand on holy ground, a temple to God's glory on Earth," he continued. "But the only use for an animal in our temple is sacrifice! Kale watcha nei conserva oh! You understand me, don't you? Don't you!"

The tribal seemed to notice the new arrivals, even if Graham hadn't yet.

"Outman!" he said pleadingly, looking at Layla. "Kuna-man mad! He kill all White Legs! You talk! You stop!"

Layla looked at the man cowering before her. She'd expected Salt-Upon-Wounds to be a monster. He undoubtedly was, but the man was not the clever tactician she'd built up in her mind. The White Leg leader was cruel, but simple. Certainly not like the Legionaries she'd been dealing with lately.

Looking up, she found Graham gazing at her as if waiting for her reaction.

"Joshua…" she said to him, "this isn't what he came here for." The Burned Man's eyes grew hard.

"Don't listen to this… thing! His cries are those of a beast caught in a thicket! He gave no mercy to my family, and I will give none to his."

Layla found herself backing up a pace. Graham's voice was harsh, and she could almost see the anger radiating off of him. The Courier had only seen him calm before. His quiet rage was terrifying. She was suddenly reminded of Daniel's warning:_ 'You've yet to feel the heat.' _

"Graham, this isn't helping anyone," Boone said from Layla's side, sounding tense. The Burned Man looked at the sniper for a moment before he spoke again.

"He has a debt to pay for what he's done, and I've come to collect."

"If what you believe is true, he'll pay for it later," Layla said, then took a deep breath. "Joshua, please… the Sorrows don't need to see this…" She gestured to the gathered Sorrows and Dead Horses watching the situation unfold.

"I want to take from them what they took from me, from my family. In this life. I want them to suffer. I want them to all die in fear and pain. I want to have my revenge. Against him. Against Caesar." The savage tone began to fade from his voice. "I want to call it my own. To make my anger God's anger. To justify the things I've done."

"Sometime I tell myself that these wild fires never stop burning." He sounded tired now. "But I'm the one who starts them. Not God. Not them. I can always see it in my mind. The warmth and the heat. It will always be a part of me, but not today." He looked down at the tribal cowering at his feet.

"Go. Get out of here. Go back. Back to the Great Salt Lake."

Salt-Upon-Wounds didn't seem to need any further encouragement. Soon, he and the other White Legs were fleeing from the camp. There was silence in the ravine until eventually the Dead Horses and Sorrows began tending to the dead.

Layla let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Next to her she saw Boone sling his rifle. Graham was still looking in the direction of the fleeing White Legs. Layla moved up to him carefully, and he turned to look at her.

"That's it. It's finished," he said calmly. "Thank you for… staying with me. I couldn't have done this on my own."

The Courier nodded. "Thank you for listening."

"Let's return to Daniel," Graham said. "Tomorrow will be here soon. And there is much to do."

* * *

><p>Hi folks, I wanted to let you know a few things about the series: For one, it has been planned out in its entirety. The main reason for mentioning this is because I will be covering all the DLCs, but not the moment they're released.<p>

Beyond that, we will be concluding "My Peace I Give Unto You" on Wednesday. The following Wednesday will begin the next story: "Crossing That Bridge."

Thanks for reading, have a happy 4th of July!


	10. For Thou Art With Me

Layla's face was hard as she stood at the Sorrows' Burial mound. The dead were carefully stacked on the scaffolding now that they had been wrapped and blessed. There were three separate areas prepared: one was for the White Legs, as the Sorrows mourned for all that died, even their enemies. Another was prepared for the 'honored dead,' the Sorrows and Dead Horses who'd fallen during the battle. Jed, Stella, Chris and Jenny's bodies had been recovered and placed among the tribals.

The last group had been at Layla's insistence: the pre-war or long dead remains that littered the canyon. There were quite a few, and it had taken nearly an entire day for the Dead Horses to find them all. Layla had asked Boone to help her recover one personally, the skeleton she'd been sitting next to when he found her crying.

She'd come clean with him on Randall Clark's story. Well, she'd let him read the entries on her Pip-Boy while she tried to keep herself from crying. The sniper was glad to help the Survivalist be honored by the descendents of those he'd sheltered, even if they didn't know who he was; Layla had insisted on not telling them. They'd wrapped him in the desert armor he'd favored, and Layla had given his gun to the tribe as well, telling them to treasure it as a relic from Zion's past.

Now, White Bird was finishing the burial ceremony, which almost all the inhabitants of Zion were attending. Boone noted Graham among the Dead Horses. By the time they'd returned to the Narrows after defeating the White Legs at their camp, the battle there was over as well. Without the arrival of Salt-Upon-Wounds, Daniel and his Sorrows had repelled the attack easily.

The missionary had still been upset about the Sorrows' involvement in the battle. He'd seemed relieved once he'd been informed of Graham's mercy toward the White Leg leader, probably something he hadn't expected from The Burned Man. Since the battle's end, there was still some awkwardness between the two, but the Daniel's anger seemed to have ebbed.

White Bird completed the ceremony, and the group gathered began to disperse. Some stayed by the dead, still mourning. As Boone moved away, he found Waking Cloud looking sadly at the burial site.

"I will never be able to bury my husband," she said quietly. Boone frowned at that.

"I'm sorry," he said to the tribal. "I… My wife was killed a year and half ago." He let out a breath. "I never got to bury her either…"

The tribal gave him a naked, stricken look. "It will never stop hurting, will it?"

"No." He couldn't lie to her. "It'll get easier to bear, but it won't ever stop."

Waking Cloud nodded, looking somber as she absorbed his words. A moment later, she looked up at him.

"Sorrows are taught to mourn, but to live even in our loss. I will let him live within me as I live on."

Boone watched as she walked away, thinking about her words.

*.*.*

Layla's squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to cry out from the pain being inflicted by the woman standing above her.

"Mother Fu-" She bit her lip. "Follows-Chalk! Why didn't you tell me this hurt so much?" she cried as the Dead Horse shaman continued applying her tattoo.

"No one usually complains this much…" the tribal answered.

"Shut up," the Courier grumbled at him. "You too," she directed at Cass, who was doing a terrible job of holding back her laughter.

"I'm sorry," the older woman said. "It's just nice to hear I'm not the only one who thinks you're a wuss."

"Well you're a duraAAGH!" the Courier cried.

"You'd better not squirm so much, you're going to ruin it," the caravaneer admonished. The tattooing process was long and very sacred, and apparently quite painful. The end result was becoming apparent on the bottom of the girl's right shoulder blade. It looked like a stylized gecko.

"There," the shaman said, "You done."

"Thank you," the Courier said automatically, but didn't move.

"You can move," the shaman added.

"I know," Layla said, remaining still. A minute later, she took a deep breath and lifted herself up. For a moment Cass thought she was going to faint, but she shook the dazed look off her face and turned to the shaman.

"Thank you. This is an honor." The woman smiled.

"You welcome. You friend to Dead Horses."

The Courier wore a goofy smile on her face as they left the cave.

*.*.*

"Ahhhhhhh," Layla sighed as she lowered herself neck-deep into the Virgin River. "That's better."

"How do you go through that more than once?" the girl asked Follows-Chalk, who sat by the river tribal shrugged.

"I will get quite a few soon."

The Courier smiled. "You've earned them."

"You will be leaving soon," the tribal said, and he saw Layla frown.

"Yeah… Gotta go back home sooner or later."

"I think I may leave the tribe," he said. "I want to see civilization for myself…" The girl's frown deepened.

"It's not as great as you think."

"You're going back to it."

"Well yeah, but I've got business back there. Responsibilities."

He looked thoughtful as Layla made her way back to the shore.

"It's your choice," she said to him, "but don't make it lightly. I left home a long time ago, and I found a lot of great things and made a lot of friends… but I also got shot in the head and buried alive. And I nearly get kidnapped or killed every other day."

Neither spoke for a while, and eventually they headed back to camp.

*.*.*

Layla struggled to fit her new yao guai gauntlet into her bag as she sat in the Dead Horse workshop cave. Boone's pack was next to hers, already brimming with gear. In all honesty, there hadn't been many new things to pack. She'd gained more knowledge than items on this trip.

But she'd also gained a stun gun. Grinning at the weapon, she carefully packed it away. She wasn't really sure how the compliance regulator worked, something she'd have to bring up with Arcade. She was sure it'd come in handy. If not, they could always use it to blow up mutfruits.

As she packed, she heard steps approaching and turned. Joshua Graham was standing at the entrance to the cavern.

"Hello," Layla said cheerfully. "Need something?"

"No." Graham said. He seemed calmer now than when they'd first met, more at peace. "No, you've done a great deal already." He moved to her side. "You seem to have a habit of finding those in their darkest moments and guiding them back to the light."

Layla felt a blush start creeping up her neck. "Most of the time people just need a nudge in the right direction. I just nudge."

He pulled his pistol from its holster, then held it out to her. "I want you to have this." His voice took an amused tone. "You need all the firepower you can get."

Layla raised an eyebrow, but took the offered weapon.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking over the engraved, snakeskin-handled pistol.

"Your hands are meant for creating and fixing, not killing. I've heard the Legion put a bounty on you." He sounded tired for a moment. "I can't go with you, so let my weapon protect you in my place."

"Thank you," she said, smiling. "It's beautiful. I'll take good care of it."

"Good. When you leave, remember what you've learned here, and know you will always have friends in Zion."

*.*.*

"I know we didn't see eye-to-eye on things, but you were doing what you thought was right," Daniel said to Layla. They were at the Sorrows' camp, near the same fire pit where she'd first met the missionary. She knew he'd accepted what had happened, but nothing she could say would make him happy about it, something she'd have to live with.

"I hope the Sorrows will take the mercy you showed to heart," Daniel continued.

"They will," Layla said. "They're good people."

The New Canaanite nodded, still looking dour. A moment later his face cleared.

"I have a message I'd like you to deliver to Happy Trails when you go back. We want to reestablish the trade lines again. By the time they're able to return, we'll be ready for them." He handed her a letter. "Give this to their Mojave headquarters."

Layla nodded, a half smile forming on her face.

"Good. Jed would have been happy to know this all worked out."

"Despite all the tragedies that befall man, life goes on," said Daniel.

Remembering Randall Clark's similar words, she smiled.

***.*.***

Waking Cloud was on her way back to the Narrows when she came upon Follows-Chalk standing by the Virgin River. He was gazing off in the distance, deep in thought.

"Does something trouble you?" she asked. The scout finally noticed her presence and turned to her.

"I'm thinking about leaving Zion."

Waking Cloud looked at him in silence for a moment. She had grown fond of the young Dead Horse as they'd traveled with the outsider group. She'd seen wanderlust in younger men before. Most quelled it, but some followed it, never to be seen again.

"Aren't you soon to become a full scout?"

Follows-Chalk nodded, then frowned as he seemed to lose himself in thought again.

"Don't you ever want to see what's beyond the canyon?" he finally said to her.

"No," she answered. "Zion is a beautiful place, one that several outsiders have told me is an oasis in the wastes. And I have a family here. They need me."

The Dead Horse didn't answer for a moment, then sighed.

"I guess I'll stay." He looked her way. "I don't want to give up paradise."

*.*.*

The road seemed to stretch on forever. Layla looked back at the canyons of Zion as it was starting to merge with the horizon. A small crowd had seen them off. Layla had been proud of herself for not dissolving into tears as she'd said her goodbyes and walked away.

Looking at the road ahead of her, she sighed. She'd promised herself she'd go back one day, but it wouldn't be for a long time, and the thought weighed heavy on her. Eventually, she decided to focus on something positive.

"When we get back, I'm going to take a hot bath, then sleep in a real bed."

"You're such a pansy," Cass teased.

"Just because I can appreciate a soft bed and being clean doesn't mean I can't live without it," the Courier answered back.

"Well, I'm going to get shit-faced. I ran out of hooch three weeks ago."

"And you didn't shrivel up and die?" Layla said, smirking at the glower she got from the older woman. "What are you looking forward to when we get back, Boone?"

The sniper looked thoughtful for a moment before he answered.

"Sleeping without my boots on."

Cass laughed, "Oh, that's adorable." She ignored the glare she received in response.

"Thank you for staying…" Layla said to the others. "I know you didn't want to help Graham…"

"It worked out for the best…" Cass said.

Layla nodded. "Are we okay?"

"Yeah," Cass said easily. Boone nodded, his face serious. Layla smirked in his direction.

"Do you always have to stick a gun in the faces of my new friends?" Layla asked.

"Oh, now you're friends with him?" Cass said tartly.

"Well, he never threatened to turn me in to the Legion. Anyway, he told me to write him, so we're gonna be super best-buddy pen pals."

"Oh you're disgusting," the older woman spat. "You've just got to be friends with everyone, don't you?"

"I'm not friends with everyone. There's a whole army of guys in skirts who aren't fond of me."

"The Garrets don't like you either," Boone added.

"Nuh-uh, just Francine. James likes me because I'm associated with the people who got him that sexbot." Cass laughed.

"The one Arcade fucked?"

Layla laughed, it was definitely going to be good to go home.

* * *

><p>I hope you all enjoyed Zion as much as I did (I miss Graham already). Thank you for reading, reviewing, favoriting and alerting.<p>

We will continue the series next Wednesday with "Crossing That Bridge." See you then!


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